My Rock
by BabyMyst
Summary: Jack and Liz are best friends. But what happens when their friendship is tested. Will it wither out or become something new?
1. Prologue

Prologue

It was the summer of 1895 and she was entering a whole new world. As her foot left the ship she never once looked back at her old life. Here, in New York City, she could make a new life. She could be a different person, become whoever she wanted to become. She was a young woman on a mission, escaping the smog and corruption of the London streets.

For weeks she wandered from store to store, working odd jobs. As a twelve year old girl on her own, she was determined to work hard and make herself a better life. She would work during the day, and then sneak in at night to sleep inside the shop. The plan always worked fairly well until the shop owner would catch her and throw her out. Not too many owners were keen on housing their employees.

Trying out a change of scenery, she took a job at a small restaurant named Tibby's. It was so different from working out of a shop, mostly because she could get a good night sleep on the booth seating. The owner, a middle aged man named Frank had her working in the back as a dish washer. He was a nice man, but felt that only men could make decent waiters.

So for days, she went unnoticed, hiding away in the back, keeping her head down, hoping that Frank wouldn't walk in to her sleeping form one morning.

One afternoon, as she was collecting the dishes from the front, her eyes fell upon a young boy sitting quietly in the corner. His eyes were eagerly scanning the pages of a small western magazine. He seemed young, probably about her age, but yet he had a look that she couldn't place. She stood transfixed, just staring at the boy as if trying to uncover a secret.

"Ms. Taylor, I don't pay you to stand around girl. Get to working" Frank called out.

She ran back to her sink, taking one more look at the stranger on her way. For the next few days, she scanned the restaurant at lunch time in hopes of finding her mystery boy. And every day he came in with a large group of young news boys. She would watch him mingle and joke with the others during the lunch rush. But as the other boys would begin to slip out, the boy remained. He would move to a small private table in the corner and pull out his small magazine, looking at each page slowly and gingerly, a glimmer of longing filling his eyes.

After one lunch period, the boy was left as the only customer in the establishment. The girl hovered in what she had designated as 'her corner'; a place where she could watch him without notice and without repercussion. But today, someone had caught her.

"I see one table that still needs clearing girl" Frank said, with a smile on his face giving her a small shove in the boy's direction. She blushed and hung her head, not knowing how to quiet handle this situation. She was never very good with people, people were hard to trust. Still, in fear of losing her job, she slowly made her way forward.

She paused at his table, wondering if it would be inappropriate to disturb him. Thankfully it didn't take long before his eyes drifted up to acknowledge her. He froze momentarily, shocked to see the small figure before him.

After a moment of awkward silence, she tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, and then pointed at his empty plate, "Are you finished?"

"Yeah, sorry, yeah," The boy quickly grabbed his effects had tipped his hat on his way out.

The girl cleared the table then retreated to her sink, determined not to look at Frank, who was smiling by the doorway. The exchanged was small, nothing earth shattering, but it would introduce something that would alter her life forever.

From that day on, her daily "hunt" for her mystery boy changed. He had begun to hunt her too. She would watch as he would enter and crane his neck around. At first she didn't understand what he was trying to find.

"It seems you've caught some someone's eye girl," announced Frank. "But don't you go getting any ideas about slacking on your work."

So it was that for the next week, she enjoyed the new game that had developed. Where she would find new places to hide from his view and he would spend his lunch craning around trying to find her. When he would wait after lunch, she would stay in the back, hidden away. In a way, she almost hoped that he would forget she had existed.

But of course, Lady Luck is rarely on one's side. One evening, after the restaurant had closed, she had been about to sneak back in, when she heard a noise behind her that made her jump about a foot in the air.

"What are you doing?" She turned around to see the mystery boy staring at her with a perplexed and amused look on his face.

She fell back against the wall, clasping her chest from the shock. "Oy! Me? What are you doing? Why are you sneaking up on people?"

"Sorry! Sorry. It's just, I mean. Well ya look like you were planning sneaking in. That eager to be at work on time?" he joked with her, trying to calm her down.

She tilted her head down, suddenly shy. "Um, nothing. Just thought I left something inside."

"Oh. Well let me help.." He started to move in front of her, to assist but she stopped him.

"No! No. Please don't. Frank'll kill me if he found out I let anyone in after hours."

The boy stopped and looked deeply at her, like he was trying to read her thoughts. She looked away, fearful that he could actually do just that.

"Let me guess. You crawl in at night to sleep?" He stared at her, not really asking her. She returned her eyes to him, wide with surprise. "Hey, don't worry. I know how it is. The name's Jack, by the way. Jack Kelly." He stuck his hand out for her, letting her know that she could trust him.

She slowly grabbed his hand, "I'm Elizabeth Taylor." It felt almost surreal, like she shouldn't be allowed to know his name. Because, if she knew his name, he was not longer a mystery and she could no longer hide.

"Well Liz, what if I told ya that I knew of a place with a decent bed that you could sleep in.. well, a bed, not sure if I'd really call it decent." Jack offered. Unfortunately, his kind gesture was lost in her horror of misunderstandings.

"Look mate!" She backed away quickly. "I don't know what you're playing at, but I'm not like that!"

"No! No, no, no!" He placed his hands up and backed away a step, showing her that he was safe. "I just meant, like a lodging house! I'm a newsie; we live in a lodging house, a large group of us!"

"Yeah, but I'm not a newsies?! I work here! Besides, isn't the house just for boys?" she replied, easing back into the conversation.

"Well, yeah, but I could talk to Striker. He is the leader of Manhattan newsies. He always tries to help everyone out. Besides, not like there aren't any girl newsies out there."

"Yes, but I'm still not a newsies," she argued.

"You could be."

She hesitated, considering his offer. But was she really ready for a new change? Becoming a newsies meant relying on others, trusting others. Elizabeth wasn't ready, or at least, she didn't know if she was ready or not.

"Look, I appreciate the offer, but I think I'll just try my luck here for a bit."

"You know that you'll get thrown out if they catch ya," he reasoned.

Elizabeth turned and looked at the small building behind her, considering her options. But it wasn't until she looked back at the boy that she made her choice. There was just something about his eyes, a look at told her she could always trust him no matter what. Understanding the change of look in her eyes, even before she did, Jack held out his hand and gave her a small smile.

Elizabeth looked down at his hand, and the up into his eyes. As she slipped her hand into his, the two departed into the night and she began what would become her new life. Her life, as a newsie.

Author's Note::

Hey guys! First fanfic in a good long while, but I am feeling motivated as of late. I understand that this is an incredibly slow start but every story must start somewhere. Besides, if I gave it all away in the first chapter, where would be all the fun? Anyways, hope you stick around for the next chapter!


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter One:

"They sleep, they sleep! They sleep their lives away, these kids!" Kloppman muttered while waking everyone for the morning papers.

Liz heard the rumblings of the lodging house, waking her up from a dream of long ago. She looked up at Jack to see him still asleep on their pillow. She smirked at him, musing on how he could sleep through anything, before crawling out of bed to head to the wash room.

Jack was her best friend. He had been ever since he first brought her to the lodging house. They were much younger then, but Jack took the time to teach her the ropes. He showed her a whole new world, one were you could make true friends, were you had a family that would watch out for you, even on your darkest days.

When he first brought her to the lodging house, they shared a bed. It was awkward at first. Liz could remember sleeping head-to-toe with him, and making him sleep on top of the covers. But they didn't really have much of an option; there were no other beds open when she arrived. It took nearly five months for a spot to become available. One of the older boys had moved out to start his life as an adult, and suddenly she had her own bed where she could stretch out.

Of course that only lasted for two nights, before she started climbing right back into bed with Jack. It wasn't sexual; she had just grown comfortable with him. He had become like her personal security blanket. Nevertheless, every night would play out the same. She would start off in her own bed, and then end up in his before morning. Jack never complained, he just thought that she trusted him.

As the boys went about getting ready, Liz finished up and sat patiently on the edge of her bed, just waiting.

"Hey Baby, how's it rolling?" Crutchy hobbled over and sat down next to her.

"Hey Crutchy. What's on your mind?" as she asked she rested her head on his shoulder. Baby was her newsies name. Jack had picked it out for her. He use to say that she looked like a little baby doll, with her fair skin and pale hair. Of course, that was long before her numerous hours of hawking the headlines out in the sun. She never really tanned though, just grew new freckles.

"Not much. Just thinking. Might have to find me a new selling spot?"

"Why? What is wrong with Greeley Square?" she asked, moving her head back so that she could look at him.

"Aw. It's nothing. Just worried people there might think I've been faking, ya know." He glanced over at the cane resting beside him.

Liz followed his glance, but couldn't understand why anyone would think that someone as sweet as Crutchy would ever fake his injury. But, then again, it was New York City, and after four years of working on the street, nothing really surprised her anymore.

"Why don't you ask Jack, he might have some ideas," she smiled over at him before standing and offering him a hand up.

As Crutchy walked over to talk to Jack, Liz leaned against her bed and watched. In the past four years, Jack had become more than just her best friend; he was someone she could rely on. But in those four years, he had changed so much in appearance. He was no longer a scrawny little boy about her height. He now towered over her, and developed lean muscles from hard work. About a year ago, Striker left Jack in charge and headed on to some factory job. Jack had to assume the role of leader.

She had been nervous that he would have less time to joke and hang with her, but he always made time for her. She was scared to admit how much she really felt about him. Admitting that she felt more for him could risk their friendship. And she was too scared to find out what life without Jack would ever mean. So, although she found him extremely handsome, she was content with just being his friend and nothing more.

After realizing that she had been starring for a good five minutes at him, Liz blushed and headed outside to wait for all the others. It didn't take long before they were all marching down to the distribution center like one giant horde. As they all gather around gate, Racetrack called out, "What is that unpleasant aroma, I fear that sewers may have back up in our sleep!"

The Delancy's shoved their way into the crowd of Newsies, and Jack stepped forward, acting like a protector of everyone.

"In the back ya lousy little shrimp!" Oscar grabbed a hold of Snipe shooter and throw him to the ground.

"I wouldn't be calling people no lousy little shrimp Oscar, unless you're talking about the family resemblance to ya brother here." Jack walked over to Morris, getting right into his face. "Yeah, that was an insult. So's this!" Jack tipped Morris' hat off of his head and took off running throughout the square.

Liz couldn't help but laugh at the maturity levels (or lack thereof) of the boys. She watched as Jack ran about, dodging blows of the Delancy brothers. Then she cringed as she saw him plow into two un-expecting boys, one who could be any older than ten! She rushed over to make sure the young boy was okay.

"Hey kid! Kid!? Are you okay?" She bent over and started brushing dust off of him. Meanwhile the kid was watching star struck as Jack hopped over a flour cart.

"Who was that?!" He asked in awe.

Liz just smirked before glancing in Jack's direction. "That, kid, is Cowboy. He's the leader in these parts. I'm Babydoll by the way. What's your name?" She stuck her hand out for him which he grabbed and shook vigourously.

"I'm Les! Les Jacobs!"

"Well, come on then Les. Best to get in line early before all the papers are gone. You do want to be a newsies, right?" She smiled down at him and then headed off to find get in line, not really waiting for Les to follow.

By now, Jack was hanging on to the top of the distribution center gate, waiting to enter. Liz just shook her head at his antics and slipped in once the door opened. Once she got up to the counter, most of the other newsies had already grabbed their paper. Liz could overhear Jack talking to some new guy, trying to convince him to sell with him. She looked over to see the same cute little boy she had been talking to outside. He was standing next to Jack's new target who could only have been his brother. They looked too much alike to not be related. Liz just stifled a laugh and grabbed her fifty before heading out. Obviously Jack and she would not be selling together today.

"Hey Skits, mind if I tag with you?"

"Not at all Babe!" He linked arms with her and the two headed out.

Author's Notes::

I promise it will pick up!


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

It was a strange day. Baby enjoyed selling with Skittery, he was always making her laugh. But they never really sold together before today. Typically she would sell with Jack, or on her own. From time to time she would sell with others, but never Skittery. Not that there was anything wrong with Skittery, mind you.

Still, something seemed off all morning. Like a calm before the storm. At lunch time, Skittery and her headed into Tibby's. Thankfully Frank had forgiven her long ago for bailing on work without warning. But as lunch dragged on, Jack never showed up.

In fact, Jack never showed up until close to 11:00 that night. He came strolling in with Racetrack with a foreign look in his eyes.

"Hey Jack! I might steal your selling partner." Skittery winked at Jack as he headed into the wash room.

Jack merely raised his eye brow and looked between Baby and Skittery, like he was looking for some sign or reaction. Baby stared back at him, unblinking. Jack smiled back and headed over to Baby's bed to collapse beside her.

"So, did you have fun with Skits today?" Jack asked casually.

"Skittery is great! We had fun; seeing as how someone replaced me today." She playfully poked him in the stomach.

The pair fell back on the mattress tickling each other and dodging pillow blows for the next ten minutes until they were becoming too loud for the few sleeping newsies.

"Hey, why don't we head out to the fire escape? I want to talk to you about something anyways," Jack asked, as Baby leaned over to retrieve her pillow from the floor.

"Sure thing hun." Jack held out a hand up for her and Baby took notice that he didn't bother letting go until they were seated outside. Despite the warnings she had given her self this morning, and every morning for the past few months, she couldn't help the small blush that had formed on her face.

"So, you and me, we're close, ya know," Jack mumbled along. Meanwhile Baby looked down at the alley beneath, hoping that he won't notice the blush creeping up her neck. She didn't know where this conversation was going. She also didn't know if she was ready for where this conversation may go.

"Jack.. What is this all about?" She hesitated to ask, hoping that her interruption would give him time to reconsider.

"Well, it's just, you're a girl. And I'm a guy.." Baby's heart began to pound in her chest.

"So," he continued, "I was just wondering. I was thinking, that maybe you could help me out. Ya know, give me some advice." Jack looked down at his hands and Baby looked over to see him wringing his fingers. "Ya see, I met this girl tonight, Sarah, she is Davey's sister."

All sound stopped. Everything around her became sucked into a void of emptiness. Her first crush and it was crushing her. For the next fifteen minutes she was placed into a form of torture while listening to Jack describe every detail of this new girl. And with every new detail, she was left to play a mental of game of comparison. She had long straight brown hair, nothing like Baby's wavy blonde. She had warm chocolate eyes, much prettier than Baby's cold green ones. She was a proper laundress, not a street rat newsie like Baby. With each detail Baby felt like vomiting over the edge. She had refused to acknowledge any feelings more than friendship for so long. But now, it seemed as though she had missed any chance that there ever might have been. Still, she sat and smiled, listening to him drone on and on.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is, do you think I have a shot?" Jack summed up lamely.

Baby patted Jack on the back and stood up. She took a deep breath before responding, "Jack, if she doesn't give you a chance, then she definitely s doesn't deserve you."

With that Baby turned and headed back inside. That was the first night in four year, that Baby slept in her own bed.

Author's Note:

This one is a bit shorter. ;( don't hate me yet.


	4. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: (since I ust realized I had not stated one yet…. Though I am pretty sure disclaimers are completely unneeded in Fanfics..) If you recognize it…. I do not own it. If you don't recognize anything, go slap yourself.

Chapter 3:

For three hours Jack tossed and turned. He couldn't understand why Baby hadn't come to join him. He played with the idea of moving to her bed, but the thought of the morning was enough to convince him not to move. When she moved in the middle of the night, the rest of the boys in the lodging house just assumed that she was scared of the dark or something. If Jack moved to her bed, it would make it look like he was the one who needed her. Then again, since he had been up for three hours waiting, maybe he did need her.

He glanced over at her sleeping form, he watched as she clung on to her pillow like she was afraid it might grow legs in the middle of the night. He couldn't understand why, but his eyes shifted over to Skittery's bed. He remembered what Skittery had told him when he came home earlier. _'Hey Jack! I might steal your selling partner."_ For some reason this bothered him.

But it wasn't like Baby didn't occasionally sell with other people. Figuring his mind was becoming rattled from sleep deprivation, Jack rolled over to stare at the ceiling. Maybe if he closed his eyes and counted sheep he would fall asleep. After fifteen minutes of trying to figure out why anyone would bother counting sheep to fall asleep, Jack gave up and crawled into Baby's bed. To hell with what anyone thought when they woke up.

The next morning Baby woke up to the sound of Kloppman making his way up the stairs. While determined to figure out just why stairs always seemed to creak more loudly early in the morning, she began to notice a pressure on her stomach. She glanced down and was surprised to find Jack's arm resting across her middle.

For a moment she smiled over at him. She reached over and brushed a small piece of hair from his brow. But it didn't take long for the memory of last night to come rushing back in.

Baby rolled out from under his arm and fell gracefully to the floor. Well, she had planned on falling gracefully. Sadly her cat-like reflexes were practically nonexistent. She glanced back at Jack to make sure the loud thud didn't wake him. He, of course, simply rolled over, dead to the world. Baby stood up and brushed herself off while looking around to see if anyone else saw her fall. Racetrack smiled and patted her on the head on his way to the washroom.

"_So much for stealth_," she thought as she followed after him.

It was almost a full ten minutes before Jack came strolling into the washroom still looking very much asleep. In an effort to avoid any questions about last night, or any more details of _Sarah_, Baby slipped out before he did wake up

"Hey Baby! Baby! Wait up!" Skittery brushed past Jack on his way out of the washroom to catch up with her. Jack turned to glance at his two exiting friends wondering if he was missing something.

"Hey Babe. You wanna sell together again today?" Skittery asked on their way down the stairs.

"I don't know, I was thinking that Jack and I would be selling together today, but," she paused to think about last night's conversation. "You know what, yeah, I'll sell with you today. God knows you need the help." She stole his hat and took off running towards the distribution center with Skittery hot on her heels.

As the pair approached the distribution center, Baby walked up victoriously, still wearing Skittery's hat, but they were met with an odd occurrence. The small group of newsies who slept on the streets were usually the first to arrive. But this morning, they weren't just muddled around waiting, they were arguing at the top of their lungs. Each kid was screaming at the one standing next to them, complaining about the papers.

"Hey guys, what's the word? The headlines can't be that bad." Skittery called out over all of them.

One of the street boys called out "They raised the price on papes! Can you believe that?!"

"Raised the price? Can that even happen?" Baby asked.

"What are you, stupid or something? They can do whatever they want, girl!" the boy replied.

"Hey! Watch it pal." Skittery stepped between Baby and the street boy. "Look, Jack will be here soon. Let's wait for him."

Baby turned around to see Jack walking up the street talking with the new boy David. He glanced over at Baby briefly, sharing a look with her that she didn't understand. He almost seemed angry about something. She couldn't think of anything she had done to make him angry, nothing this week at least.

By the time Jack arrived at the gate, the small group had become a large crowd of angry newsies. No one could believe the price increase.

"They jacked up the price. Did ya hear that Jack? Ten cents a hundred! Ya know, it's bad enough that we gotta eat what we don't sell, now they jacked up the price! Can you believe that?!" Blink cried out.

"This will bust me. I'm barely making a living right now," said Skittery.

As the rest of the newsies began launching their own complaints, Jack headed up to the distribution desk to try and sort out the situation. Baby grabbed a cigarette out of her pocket and sat down on the ground near the news paper cart. With everyone talking at once, nothing was going to get accomplished.

She leaned back and watched as Jack stepped into the role of leader perfectly. He was quiet, like her. He was thinking of his next course of action. He had to be like this, he had to think things through. As the leader, his decision wouldn't affect just himself, but everyone around him. Striker had picked the right man to replace him.

Baby looked up at Skittery who was towering over her. He was watching Jack, waiting for his orders. She couldn't help but laugh at the irony of a bunch of kids waiting for guidance from just another kid. At least Manhattan wasn't like Brooklyn. Jack may be in charge in Manhattan, but Spot Conlon was in command in Brooklyn. Over there, if he says jump, his boys don't even stop to wonder why.

As Baby was getting more and more lost in her thoughts, shouting from all around her brought her back to reality.

"Strike? Who is striking?" Baby called out to no one. Her voice was usually too quiet for people to bother hearing anyways.

Shockingly though, someone did reply to her. "We are." She looked up to see Skittery offering her a hand up. Once he pulled her up to standing, he continued with, "Jack wants us to go on strike."

Baby looked around at all the boys following Jack out. She handed Skittery his hat back, "Guess we aren't partners today." She smiled and headed out with the crowd.

Jack hovered in a corner and talked to David briefly. In truth, Jack had no idea what he was doing. But David, he was smart, he went to school. But he didn't know what it meant to live and work on the streets. With David's book smarts, and Jack's street smarts, maybe they could pull this off.

David told him, "Pulitzer and Hurst have to respect our rights. They can't treat us like we don't exist. If we stick together like the trolley workers, they can't break us up. We're a union now, the news bys union; we have to start acting like a union."

And with each sentence David spoke to Jack, Jack would turn around a shout it to the whole crowd of newsies in words that they would understand.

Jack stood in front of everyone, working to get them excited about the strike. Baby was so proud of him, for standing up for what he believed in. His enthusiasm was contagious.

"We got to get the word out to all the newsies in New York! I need some of those, what do ya call them?" Jack paused, trying to think of the word he was looking for.

"Ambassadors?" David supplied.

"..Yeah. Right. You guys got to be am-bastards and tell the others that we are on strike!"

A few newsies announced that they were going to head out to areas that they were familiar with. Jack glanced around trying to figure out who should go where. His eyes fell on Skittery for a moment and he tried to think of the farthest place from Manhattan. Jack had no idea why, he normally like Skittery.

"Alright, Bumlets, Specs, and Skittery, you take Queens. Pie Eater, Snoddy, you take Eastside. And Snipeshooter you go with them. Alright, so what about Brooklyn? Who wants Brooklyn?" When no one replied, Jack looked around for Baby. He knew how much Spot annoyed her, so he figured he'd give her a hard time. He'd go with her, of course, but as he glanced around, Baby was nowhere to be found. Still, no one else was offering to head to Brooklyn.

"Come on, Spot Conlon territory!" At this people started looking anywhere but at Jack. "What's a matter? You scared of Brooklyn?!"

"Hey! We ain't scared of Brooklyn!" Boots jumped in. "It's just, Spot Conlon makes us a little nervous." But as Boots was saying this, Jack finally noticed Baby. She was heading off in the direction of Queens with Skittery and the others. Jack just rolled his eyes and ignored the pit growing in his stomach.

"Well he don't make me nervous." Jack replied, trying to hide his growing anger. "So you and me Boots, we'll go to Brooklyn. And Dave can keep us company."

Author's Note:

This is where I admit I still have no idea where this story is going. Let me know how much you love or hate it so far ;P


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

As Skittery began his long trek out to Queens, he reached over and grabbed Baby by the sleeve and dragged her along behind him.

"What the-? Skits, what are you doing?" Baby called out.

"What? Did you really want to sit around here all day doing nothing?"

Bumlets glanced back, laughing at the look Baby's face. She looked torn between joining and running.

"Look Babe, Skittery's got a point. It seems like Jack is pretty busy here," he pointed behind her at Jack addressing the crowd. "Why not come and have a good time?"

Baby looked back at Jack but she was too far away to hear what was being said. Not that it really mattered, Bumlets was right. Jack was going to be busy here. Figuring a day of fun and good company was in order. Baby turned back around and linked arms with Skittery and Bumlets

"Well, if we are heading to Queens, I vote we stop by Mario's and grab lunch!"

As the four friends headed out to Queens, Baby took one last glance behind her to watch Jack as he disappeared into the World Building.

After one last amazing lunch at Mario's, it suddenly became time to admit to the facts. With the strike starting up, there was no idea where money for their next meal would come from. Baby only had two dollars in savings and no one knew just how long the strike would last.

Thankfully, Bumlets and Specs were doing a great job at helping to keep everyone's mind off of the negative side of striking. They were walking slightly ahead of Baby and Skittery and were singing some Irish tune and bowing to random strangers.

"Ya can't take them nowhere," Skittery commented between laughs.

"But apparently, bringing them to Queens is okay?" announced a deep voice from behind them. The four turned to see Blaze, the Queens leader and a few of his newsies.

"Blaze! Long time no see," replied Baby.

"So Babes, where's ya boyfriend, Jack? Ain't you two strapped to the hip?" Blaze asked, glancing around to see if he over looked Jack somehow.

"Jack's not here, Blaze. I am," said Skittery, stepping forward. "Jack has all of us heading out to the boroughs today about the papes."

"What? Is the price increase too much for you 'Hatteners?" Blaze questioned, turning to his newsies to snicker.

"It's not that!" Skittery defended. "We're striking." In an instant the Queens newsies all stopped laughing and turned to look at Skittery as if he had grown an extra head.

"Striking?!" Blazed barked out. "Are you all outta your minds over there?!"

Baby finally stepped forward. "Jack knows what he is doing Blaze. Are you on board or not?"

Blaze stared down at the small girl, analyzing how he wanted to reply. After a tense moment, a smirk appeared on his face. "Tell ya what doll, if Spot Conlon's in.. _then_ we'll join."

The Queens newsies all turned to head back out to their selling spots leaving the four Manhatteners to make a not-so-victorious trek back to their own territory.

"I hope for our sakes, that whoever got sent to Brooklyn has better luck then we did," said Bumlets as they made their way to Greeley Square.

Unfortunately, Jack returned from Brooklyn with no more luck than any of the other newsies he had sent out. Add in his completely unwarranted anger directed towards Skittery and the 90 degree weather, and Jack was definitely not in the best of moods. When he arrived at Greeley Square he glanced around, trying to find Baby. She was always the best person to talk to when he needed to clear his head.

But, before he could see her sitting under one of the small trees, Racetrack caught his attention. Jack headed over to the group of boys playing dice, which of course included Skittery. For some reason that Jack couldn't understand his blood began to boil and he felt the need to look around again to see if Baby was nearby. And while she was watching him from her tree, he still didn't see her.

"Hey how ya doing Jack?" Race asked, standing up from his game. "So, uh, where's Spot?"

"Uh, well he was concerned with us being serious. Can you imagine that?" Jack supplied, trying not to get everyone's hopes down.

"Well, you know, Jack, maybe we ought to ease off a little, ya know," Race answered.

Blink voiced his concerns that, "without Spot and the others, there's not enough of us Jack, ya know."

"Jack, maybe we are moving too soon, maybe we ain't ready," stated Mush.

Jack listened to his newsies opinions quietly, and then it happened.

Skittery spoke out saying, "I definitely think we should forget about it for a while." And with that, Jack snapped.

"Oh do ya?!" He yelled out. "Hey! Who are we kidding here? Spot was right. Is this just a game to you guys?" While Jack made his point, he knew he had to get his anger under control. He felt a prickling on his neck, like he could tell someone was staring at him. It didn't take long for his eyes to finally lock on to Baby's.

She had remained in her seat, watching the transaction between the boys. The stress was written across Jack's face. She tilted her head to the side signaling for him to come and join her.

Once he had sat down next to her, she nudged his shoulder. "Long time no see, stranger." She offered him a small smile which he returned.

"Where have you been all day?" Jack asked. He knew the answer, she had been in Queens. But he was hoping that she would say why.

"Bumlets and Skittery wanted me to go to Queens with them," she stated, shrugging her shoulders like it wasn't a big deal. "I figured you'd be busy here."

"I was going to see if you wanted to head over to Brooklyn with me."

"You mean I missed a chance to see the almighty _Spot Conlon_? How ever will I live with myself?" she asked sarcastically.

"So, I've been meaning to ask ya about S-" Jack began but then the sounds of the distribution bell rang throughout the square. Baby and Jack shared a look and a smile. Whatever needed to be said between them could wait. Jack had a job to do now.

With that Jack stood up and yelled out, "Anybody hear that?!"

A chorus of "No's" answered him

"So what are we gonna do about it?!" he continued to the crowd of newsies.

"SOAK EM"

And with that, the large crowd of Manhattan newsies took off towards the distribution center to make their first official move as a union.

In no time flat, papers were being ripped and thrown about. A few boys had gathered rotten tomatoes from a street vender and were tossing them at the distribution office. Baby had climbed on top of a knocked over newspaper trolley and used the papers to create 'paper snowballs' to launch at the boys beneath her.

For a full 3 minutes, the kids of the city were able to be kids, to play. To just enjoy life and forget about the mindless day in and day out work that needed to be done to survive. Sadly, a chorus of whistles came to stop their fun. It was the police, there to arrest them. Baby hopped down and looked around for Jack. He found her and grabbed her hand and held on tight. He wasn't going to let anything happened to her, not on his watch.

They made it all the way back to the lodging house and collapsed on her bed, laughing from the adrenaline rush. It wasn't too long before the house was full up, with each person proudly telling their own side of their escape story to whoever would listen.

No one even noticed Kloppman as he made his way up the creaky staircase.

"HEY!" He called out, banging a broom stick on a nearby bunk to get everyone's attention. "Hey! Some gentleman by the name of Brian Denton just stopped by. Apparently Crutchy has been taken by the police."

Every head started to search about the room, not wanting to believe what Kloppman was telling them. Baby turned to Jack, with a worried look in her eyes.

"Jack, what are we going to do? We can't just leave him in there!"

Author's Note:

Hope you're all still staying with me. I'm trying my best to proof read each chapter but my mind is reading what should be there and not what is there sometimes. I'm going to go back through this weekend and fix what I see. Thank you all so much for the reviews! You are awesome!

Fun Fact: If you read this while watching the movie, I have tried to include a few subtle facts. Like when Jack enters Greely Square from Brooklyn, he really does look like he is looking around for someone ;p


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5:

After twenty minutes of planning, Jack started to head out with David to go on a jail breaking mission. There was no way he was going to allow Crutchy to spend even one night in that place. He remembered only too well how terrible Synder could be. When he was fifteen he got caught himself. For a whole week he had to stay in that hell hole. He only escaped due to sheer dumb luck, not that he would ever admit that to anyone.

Nevertheless, the newsies were his responsibility now, and he wasn't going to leave any man behind. Before he could reach the front door, he heard someone running down the stairs after him. He knew it was Baby, even before she called out to him.

"Jack! Wait! Please don't go." He turned to see her pleading with him. He could see the fear in her eyes.

Jack glanced over at David to see him watching the pair. "Hey Davey, would ya give us a minute?" David nodded in understanding and stepped outside, leaving the two alone in the foyer.

"Babe, I know you're scared. But we can't just leave him in there," Jack tried to reason but Baby was just staring back at him in horror.

"And what happens if they catch you? I can't.." she looked down at the floor, sighing.

Jack took this opportunity to move in and embrace her, holding her close to him, resting his chin on the top of her head. "Shh. Don't worry about me. I promise, I'm coming back tonight." He played with the tips of her hair which fell to her mid back while he held her.

Baby looked up into his eyes. She knew that there was no changing his mind about this. After a short nod, Jack kissed her forehead and headed out to join David.

"So what is the deal with you two?" David questioned.

"Me and Baby? We're friends, just friends." Jack was quick to reply. "Actually Dave, I've been meaning to talk to you."

"About Baby?"

"No, um, about your sister actually." Jack couldn't have feelings for Baby. She trusted him like a brother or something; he could never ruin that trust. No matter how he really felt about her, it was a hopeless cause. But maybe with Sarah he could build something. At least that was what he was telling himself. That _was_ what he wanted… right?

Baby headed back upstairs slowly. When Jack had been taken to the refuge, it was the hardest time in her life. For a whole week she slept alone in his bed, softly crying herself to exhaustion. She had thought that he would be in there for years. It had been a hard winter and the papers were just not selling. Jack made one bad decision to steal some food for them, and he never made it home that night. She could remember that sick feeling, like she had just lost her best friend for good.

Racetrack looked up from his poker game to see Baby lingering in the stairway. He called over to her but she had completely zoned everyone out. He stepped over to her and she nearly jumped a foot in the air when he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Geez! It's only me!" he cried out.

"S-sorry Race. I didn't hear you sneaking up on me," she gave him a small smile.

"Come on over and join us." He pointed to the small group of boys playing in the center aisle of the room. When he noticed Baby not moving an inch, he added, "Jack'll be fine Babes. Come on." He grabbed her hand and dragged her over to the group.

Baby smiled at Race's attempt to cheer her up. She even played two or three rounds, losing every time of course. One benefit to the strike, no one was actually betting with money anymore, just paper balls in various sizes to represent different amounts. This way, no one was losing much needed money.

After her few hands, Baby was done pretending everything was ok. Every minute that passed, felt as though it might as well have been an hour. She quietly climbed up to Jack's bunk and sat down, legs crossed, waiting for him to return. She watched the stairwell like a hawk, waiting to hear any signs of creaks from below.

"Hey Babe. You okay?" Baby looked over to see Skittery leaning against the bed post, looking up at her with worry.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just worried about Jack is all."

"Yeah, no kidding. You haven't even blinked in over five minutes straight." He joked, climbing up to sit next to her, hanging his feet over the edge of the bunk.

"Oh." Baby looked down at her hands, making sure to blink away the dryness in her eyes that she hadn't even noticed before. She turned and gave Skittery a quizzical look.

"What? Something on my face?" Skittery asked.

"Why were you watching me for five minutes straight?"

Skittery just laughed and nudged Baby's shoulder with his own. He was saved from answering by the arrival of Jack, who was by himself.

Jack's eyes immediately fell to Skittery and Baby. Sitting together. On _his_ bed.

As he headed over in their direction, he was stopped by Mush, wondering where Crutchy was.

"Oscar and Morris worked him over pretty good. Crutch was having a hard time walking. Said he wanted to stay and heal up for a bit." Jack replied, loud enough for everyone to hear at once. As the room erupted with yells and promises of revenge, Jack stormed over to his bed.

"Skittery. Mind telling me what the hell you're doing?" Jack all but growled.

"Talking to Baby here. Ya got a problem?" Skittery proclaimed back. Baby looked between to two boys in shock. She had never seen them so hostile towards one another before.

"For starters, you're sitting on _my_ bed." Jack gave Skittery a threatening look.

Skittery jumped down and got in Jack's face. The two boys were about the same height. "Sorry, I didn't think you were _using_ it anymore," he replied pointedly. Jack glanced up at Baby, realizing that neither one of them were talking about a bed at all.

Baby was too busy glancing around the room to see if anyone was paying attention to Jack and Skittery. She didn't know what was happening, or how to stop it.

"Back. Off. Skitts." Jack grinded out then reached his hand up for Baby, his eyes never leaving Skittery. Baby glanced down at Jack's handing, taking it and jumping down to join them. Jack turned and headed off in the direction of the fire escape, dragging Baby along behind him. Baby turned to see Skittery watching them retreating. He had a look on his face that she couldn't quiet place. Somewhere between hurt and anger.

"What the hell is going on, Jack? What was that all about?" she asked once Jack shut the window behind them.

"Is there something you wanna tell me?" Jack rebutted.

"Yeah, there is, as a matter of fact. You're being a jerk."

"What's going on between you and Skittery?" Jack questioned.

"Me and Skittery? Jack, what are you talking about? We are just friends. Nothing more."

"Don't ya mean nothing _yet_?"

"Nothing now, nothing ever!" Baby replied.

"Well ya _might_ wanna tell him that!" Jack scoffed and looked down into the alleyway underneath them.

"What does it matter to you anyways," Baby said almost under her breath. She hadn't even meant for the words to come out, they just kind of slipped out against her wishes.

"It matters." Jack stated, turning to look her directly in the eyes, causing Baby's breath to catch in her throat.

After a moment of awkward tension, Jack slowly took a step forward, edging closer to Baby. Not able to continue looking into her eyes, Jack glanced down at his shoes. It took him a bit by surprise when he felt Baby reach out and pull him in for a hug. He could feel her physically release a breath he didn't even know she had been holding.

"I'm glad you're back.'" She whispered into his neck, sending shivers down his spine. Jack slowly returned the hug, wrapping his arms around her lower waist.

"Well, I did promise ya," he smiled, just enjoying the moment. But as his heart began to race, he pulled away.

Baby looked up at him, wondering if something was wrong. But Jack simply reached down and reopened the window.

He turned toward her and offered his hand, "Come on, let's go to bed." And so the two friends crawled through the window and proceeded to get ready for sleep, neither one caring to admit their true feelings.

Author's Notes::

Hey guys! Huge thank you to Anon for your reviews! I am going away on vacation next week so I am going to try and get one more chapter out before I leave. But I promise to come back! I think I have a plan for this story finally ;p I'm going to use next week to jot down ideas for when I get home.


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6:

The next day, in an effort to avoid complications, Jack left the lodging house early to be alone. His mind was racing. Between his growing confusion about Baby and the strike looming, Jack felt like he needed to catch a break. He spent all morning casually wandering about Central Park trying to sort out his feelings and figure out the best way to get Spot on board with the strike.

By lunch time, he had no new answers to his problems and his stomach was beginning to ache. He walked over to Tibby's but something stopped him from going inside. Part of him wanted to argue that it wasn't practical to spend what little money he had left on a full lunch. But the real reason was Baby. As if he wasn't confused enough, one look inside the window to see her sitting next to Skittery and he knew he needed to walk away.

Jack bought an apple off a street vendor and headed over towards David's house. He may not be able to figure out his feelings towards Baby, but perhaps he could figure out some plans for the strike.

Baby woke up to an empty bed. She looked around the bunkroom for Jack but he was nowhere to be found. One thing Jack was always good at was hiding when he didn't want to be found.

"So Babes, what are our plans for today?" Skittery asked, leaning against the bed next to Baby's.

Baby looked at him, confused that she had forgotten something.

"What, were ya planning on just sitting here all day?" he asked.

"Skitts, we're broke kids with no job. There isn't really much we can do," Baby replied, finally choosing to sit up and face the world.

"Come on, get up. I got a plan, meet me downstairs in 5."

Baby watched him head off and a nagging feeling started to come over her. _What did Jack mean about Skittery?_ Baby decided to put it out of her mind and just chalked it up to Jack being stressed about Crutchy or something.

As she headed outside to meet up with Skittery, it didn't take long to figure out what Jack had meant. Baby spent the entire morning having Skittery make awkward passes at her. During lunch, he even tried paying for her food like it was a date.

It wasn't that she didn't like Skittery, she did. But she knew in her heart, she could never like him as more than a friend.

By the time night came, Baby was at her wits end. She didn't know how to deal with confrontation. She tried hiding in the bathroom but people began to think she was sick. All she kept thinking was "_Where is Jack!?_" but for some reason, he still wasn't home.

When Jack arrived at David's house, the two boys head up to the roof to try and strategize for the strike. Les was hanging on to their every word, looking at the two boys as if they were heroes. Jack couldn't help but feel guilty, he worried that he would let Les down, that he would let all of his newsies down.

Around late afternoon, Sarah came home from work and joined the boys. Jack couldn't deny the fact that Sarah was very beautiful. She had a great smile, a wonderful sense of humor, and yet there was something missing. Something small that he couldn't figure out.

"Hey Jack, why don't ya stay for dinner? My dad might have some ideas," David suggested.

Jack briefly thought about Baby, how she would probably be worried about him. Then images of her and Skittery came back into his mind, "You know what, dinner sounds great."

Throughout dinner David's father helped the boys come up with some plans, based off of his experience with unions. While the boys talked, Sarah and her mother cleaned up. Jack kept glancing at Sarah, trying to figure out what he was missing. Occasionally, she would look up and flash him a small smile. David was watching the interaction between the two.

"Hey Jack, wanna go grab some air?" David got up and head for the fire escape.

"What' on your mind Dave?" Jack asked as he joined him.

"Nothing, you seem a bit lost in there, figured I'd save you."

"Lost? What are ya talking about Dave?" Jack looked over at his friend in confusion.

"You keep staring at Sarah like your waiting for something to happen."

Jack looked down, not really sure how to proceed with this conversation. David was his friend, but Sarah was David's sister. "Sarah is great David. But I am not sure where I stand right now. I'm not even sure I'm ready for a relationship," Jack answered honestly.

"Look Jack, some friendly advice. My sister, sure she can be a bit crazy and intense, but she always means well. It is obvious she likes you, but I think something is holding you back." David paused for a moment, trying to gather his words before he continued. Meanwhile Jack was trying to understand what David was saying. Sarah had always been so calm and collected around him, nothing like what David was describing.

"Crazy and intense? Are we talking about the same Sarah, Dave?" Jack questioned.

"You try living with her…" David mumbled. Jack just shook his head and laughed. He had never had a sibling before, but he saw enough sets of them to understand that some times, siblings just see things differently.

"Yeah, well, until I can figure out what is holding me back. I don't know if a relationship is such a good idea for me," Jack concluded.

"It isn't too hard to figure out Jack. The only thing stopping you is Baby. You two have some weird bond. You two act like your best friends, treat each other like boyfriend and girlfriend, and care about each other like family. You probably need to figure out what you guys really are to one another first."

As Jack walked home that night, he realized David was right. Baby had just always been there, he never really put any thought into how much they affected one another. Jack tried to think of how life was before she joined the newsies, and it was like those years didn't ever really exist.

When he got back to the lodging house, the first thing he did was look around for Baby. Even that action was simply drilled into him. After searching for five minutes, Jack gave up and asked Race.

"She came in not too long ago with Skittery, but then she vanished, Skitts has been looking for her for the past twenty minutes. That girl sure can hide," Race walked back over to his bunk leaving Jack smirking.

Up on the roof there was a small square which held the door to the stairs. Long ago, Baby and Jack had built a makeshift ladder out of crates and barrels to climb up onto of the top landing. It was private and hidden, no one ever thought to look up there. It use to be their secret hide out as kids.

Sure enough, when Jack peaked his head up, Baby was curled up, looking at the stars.

"Jack! You're home! I'm so so glad!"

Jack took a seat next to her and quietly looked out across the city. "So what brings you up here?" he asked.

"Oh. Just needed a bit of fresh air. Where have you been all night?"

"Had dinner over at David and Sarah's place. The family is real nice." He looked over at her, watching her face for emotion.

Hot rage and jealousy flooded Baby, but she hide it well, shrugging her shoulders and pretending to be interested in what they had eaten for dinner.

Jack had been waiting, hoping that she would get mad. Maybe that would mean she cared about him. David's words were still playing in his mind. Suddenly, as anger and hurt were building inside over her lack of emotion, Jack blurted out something he wished he could instantly take back. Something he only said because he wanted to force Baby to show some kind of emotion.

"I don't think we should sleep in the same bed anymore," he announced.

Baby looked over at him in shock. "What?!"

"It's just. I mean. Things with Sarah. And. I don't. It was stupid. Neve-" Jack struggled though trying to apologize, but Baby stopped listening at 'Sarah'.

"I understand. Maybe you're right Jack. This could be for the best. Things with Skittery being as they are and all." Baby gave him a small curt smile and got up. She walked away without a look behind her. If she did, Jack would have been able to see the tears falling down her face.

Jack remained on the roof, stunned from what had just happened. Also still partly confused over what had just happened. _She looked upset. But she agreed? She didn't argue with me? What does she mean things with Skittery? Are they dating now?!_

Author's Notes::

I'm back in town! Hard chapter, I know. Don't start sending hate mail just yet though.


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7:

The next morning, things were pretty awkward. The lodging house woke up to Baby loudly slamming everything in her path. She knocked over a small table, threw her hair brush down in the sink, slammed the restroom door shut, and all but ran over Boots when he tried to enter the wash room. Everyone was looking around for Jack, but he was nowhere to be found.

Jack never made it off the roof that night. He had fallen asleep in their secret spot and had a restless night full of terrible dreams. In one he had been chasing Baby around town while she was wearing a wedding dress. He chased her down an aisle and right into the waiting arms of Skittery. It was that last dream that caused him to bolt awake in a panic. Unfortunately he woke up slightly wet all over from the morning dew and with a terrible creak in his neck.

By all accounts, today was not going to be a good day.

Jack and David had talked with Mr. Jacobs about forming together the newsies outside of the distribution center. So with that in mind, Jack crawled slowly down the roof to round up his newsies. Today, they had to prove themselves to everyone, including Spot.

As the newsies all headed out, there was a thickness in the air. Everyone could tell that something was wrong. Jack was being unusually quiet and Baby looked ready to kill anyone who dared speak to her. And for some reason, though no one understood what, Jack and Baby were refusing to look at one another.

When they arrived at the distribution center, there was a silence, a pause, a brief moment where the newsies starred down at the scabs who were still trying to sell. Jack was trying to focus, trying to figure out his next move. Suddenly, all of the emotion, and all of the stress on his shoulders, it was just too much to handle. He messed up things with Baby, he had failed his newsies by not securing Spot's help. He had even failed in protecting Crutchy. Something in Jack snapped that morning.

"LET'S SOAK THEM FOR CRUTCHY!" He screamed out before storming into the distribution center.

As everyone piled into the small center, it was Race who first realized something was wrong.

"Jack! Jack! It's a trick!" But it was too late. The gates shut behind the newsies trapping them in. Large men with chains and brass knuckles began to come out from inside the center. As fights began to break out, Jack looked around for Baby, hoping she got out before the gates closed.

He barely got a good look around before Oscar and Morris were in his face, trying to corner him in. Thankfully, cries of 'Brooklyn' began to fill the air and Jack looked up to see Spot and his army descending on the fight.

Jack began to fight back, all the while looking around for Baby. He still had no idea whether she was inside or out.

Meanwhile, Baby was being shoved into a corner by a rather large brute. She tried to struggle free, she kicked and clawed at her attacker, hoping he would loosen his grip, but it was all to no avail. The man pinned her to a wall by her shoulder.

"I don't hit females. But if you don't stop squirming I just might!" he growled out at her after she clawed his forearm with her one free hand.

Baby called out to Jack but he was lost in the mob of men. She had no idea where he was, but she kept calling out, hoping he would find her. She looked over to see Skittery take a hard hit which caused him to fall back into the group behind him. Next thing she knew, he was flying back up to get his revenge.

Skittery glanced over and saw Baby being restrained by one man. The man didn't appear to be doing any harm, but he still rushed over to save her. With one solid punch to the gut, the man released Baby. Skittery and the thug briefly struggled before suddenly the crowd of men was being pushed back.

It seemed that more Brooklyn boys had arrived through the front gate.

As everyone began celebrating, Skittery grabbed Baby in a tight hug and spun her around. She pulled out of his arms, but then he leaned in to give her a kiss. He never made it that far though.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Baby cried out, backing away even further.

"Excuse me? I did just save your life ya know." Skittery argued.

"So? It's not like that makes you my boyfriend?!" Baby called out in disgust then turned and ran off before Skittery could respond. She turned to see him pulled into a group of newsies in front of some news reporter.

Baby couldn't believe that Skittery had just tried to kiss her. She also couldn't believe how she responded. Suddenly guilt swam over her. She didn't mean to have been so coarse about her reaction. She needed advice, someone to talk to. She needed her best friend.

Baby headed back to the lodging house, determined to work through things with Jack. She also promised herself that she would apologize to Skittery. She had never meant to lead him on, or to reject him so harshly.

Unfortunately, both things were hard to do without the other party involved present. For some reason, she couldn't locate Jack or Skittery. What she did instead was lay on her bed, staring at the bunk above hers, determined to stay awake until one, or both of them came home. It only took twenty minutes for her to fall asleep.

When she woke up the next morning, she felt a familiar rise and fall of someone breathing. She looked up to see Jack still dozing. It seemed as though he had come home at some point in the night and was sleeping in her bed.

'_I thought he didn't want to sleep together anymore_,' Baby pondered.

Jack must have felt her move or felt her staring at him, either way, he began to stir. The bright sun outside told them they probably slept in longer than they should have. With no need to wake up early to sell, they both had gotten a decent night's sleep.

Jack mumbled 'morning' before turning to lay on his side, still holding Baby close.

"Morning," she managed to squeak out, still confused about everything.

"Bout time you two woke up, almost lunch," a voice called from the bunk above theirs.

Baby reluctantly sat up and let out a long sigh. The bunk above hers was always empty, unless one person was in town.

"Spot…. You're still here.."

"Nice to see ya too Baby." He retorted, a smirk playing on his face.

"Never said it was," Baby replied lazily as she headed into the washroom to get ready for the day.


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8:

As Baby walked into the washroom, Spot jumped down and sat on the bed across from Baby's.

"Your boys said something about a Denton wanting us all to meet at Tibby's"

"The report? Okay. Where are my boys?" Jack ask, finally looking around to notice it was empty.

"Ya do realize that you two slept in till 11, right? They are probably out enjoying the city, unlike you two bums." Spot smirked and leaned back, crossing his arms behind his head.

"Oh no," Jack sighed, glancing over at the washroom.

"Trouble in paradise?"

Jack looked over at Spot in confusion but quickly figured out what Spot was talking about as he nodded his head over to the washroom. "Huh? No. It's not that. I just did something I told her we weren't going to do anymore. Things are just a bit, complicated right now." Jack stood up to start getting ready, glad that Spot wasn't pressing the issue.

Baby walked out, still pulling her hair back.

"So what brings your awfulness to town Spot?

Spot pretended to be stabbed by her remark before getting up off the bed. "Apparently we are needed over at Tibby's. Plus there is a girl in town I'd like to go see." He winked at Baby's disgusted face and headed down the stairs.

"I swear, that boy is going to catch something one day."

"Probably already has," Jack added. The two friends shared a smile before heading out to Tibby's.

When they arrived, Baby walked over to sit in a small corner table. The table use to be Jack's private one but she had over taken it years ago. She loved the newsies, but most lunch breaks, she liked having a few moments of peace in the corner. She would opt for quiet as well, but with a room full of newsies, that was never going to happen. So she choose to sit quietly and just listen to their conversations.

Jack, meanwhile, had been heading over to one of the larger canter tables when Skittery crossed his path. Both boys shared a dark look before continuing on. Jack felt Skittery push into his shoulder slightly. He was tempted to turn around, but his better sense stepped in and he felt that sitting down was probably the best option. He didn't want to fight with Skittery.

To be honest, Jack didn't know what he wanted. Skittery had been one of his newsies for a few years now. But the thought of him anywhere near Baby maybe him want to wring his neck. Of course, Jack would feel that way towards any man. But no other man had ever made a move at Baby. He looked over at her sitting quietly in her corner. He wished that she would look up at him, give him some sign. But she just kept her head down, reading over the menu.

The bell over the door rang and Denton walked in carrying the afternoon edition of The Sun. He placed it down in front of Jack, proudly showing the boys how they had made the front page. The whole restaurant erupted into cheers, which were only boosted when Denton announced he was paying for everyone's lunch.

Jack sat in shock over everything they had been accomplishing lately. But his heart felt into his stomach when he noticed the large picture on the front page, with him front and center. He looked over at Baby who had moved to join the crowd looking at the papers. She looked up, understanding his concern. If the police recognized Jack, they could be in serious trouble.

Everyone else in the room was going on about the article. They were all so excited about their success. They didn't notice the worry on their leader's face. Or on Baby's.

"So what? You get your picture in the pape, so what's that get ya? Huh?" Skittery asked out. Baby looked over at him and could tell he was still upset. She hadn't had a chance to talk to him yet. But Jack had had enough, he couldn't hold his tongue anymore.

"You been in a bad mood all day!" he barked out.

"I haven't been in a bad mood, you've.."

"You're blooming dumb." Race interjected sensing a growing tension between to two boys, "What's a matter with you. You're in the papes your famous. Your famous, you get anything you want! And that's what's so great about New York!"

Al of the newsies gathered around the center table and began planning their next step. But Baby was too busy trying to fix things. She headed over to Skittery and grabbed his arm, dragging him outside. He wasn't putting up any fight, but it was apparent he had no desire to go with her.

Jack watched them walking out, every part of him wanting to run out and follow. '_Maybe she does care about him. Maybe she wants to be with him. I can't keep interfering._'

"Skittery, we need to talk. Look, I'm-"

"You're in love with Jack." Skittery stated, leaning back against the side of the building. He was refusing to look at her face so his eyes remained fixed to the shoe lace.

"What? No!" Baby tried to defend

"Baby. It is obvious. To everyone," he said dejectedly.

"Skittery. No, I can't love Jack. He is my best friend."

"And yet you do," he responded.

"Skittery, listen, I just want to apologize about yesterday. I handled that all wrong," she placed her hand on his forearm, trying to get him to really listen to her.

"No, Baby. It is my fault. I never should have thought I stood a chance."

Baby didn't know how to respond. Here was a boy, who cared about her, who wanted to be with her. She wished with all her heart that she could return his feelings.

"It's ok Babes, maybe my timing is just wrong," he finally looked up, giving her a small smile. Both of them knew it wasn't about timing. But she returned the smile.

The two friends embraced in a hug, deciding to move on. Jack walked by the alley to see them locked into each other's arms. He turned and headed back to the lodging house, mind filled with thoughts of her.

That night, as all of the newsies were lounging about the lodging house, Baby was laying on Jack's bunk, wondering about what Skittery had said to her. She wished she knew how Jack felt, but that conversation was too scary to have. She didn't know how he would respond, or if it would ruin their friendship.

As she was lost in her thoughts, she heard a stiffening quiet fall downstairs. The newsies she knew were only that quiet when they were sleeping so she knew something was wrong. As she began to head down stairs, she ran into Jack who gave her an odd look.

Baby followed his eyes down into the foyer where Snyder was waiting, asking about Jack. Baby turned to give him a look of panic but Jack merely winked and headed downstairs.

'_What the hell is he doing?!_'

Jack got behind Snyder and began mocking his movements. Leave it to Jack to showboat at a time like this. Baby had half a mind to go down there and smack him upside his head.

Before she got a chance though, Jack snuck out the front door. Just in time because after he walked out Snyder began to search the entire building.

Baby went into a panic, hoping that Jack didn't get caught; she didn't know what she would do. She waited up half the night, worried that he had been caught somehow. He never returned.

Jack ran out of the building and took off for David's house. He had figured he could hide out there until the ehat at the lodging house died down a bit. He wasn't sure how long Snyder would be there, or if he would be watching the building for his return.

Unfortunately, when he got to David's all of the lights were out. Not wanting to wake anyone up, he sat down on the fire escape, figuring he'd wait an hour then head back. That was the last thing he remembered before sleep took him.

Author's Note:

Thank yo all for the wonderful reviews! You are all amazing.


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Baby woke up to the sounds of Blink snoring two beds over. As she looked outside, she realized the sun was just beginning to rise. She quickly looked around the room for Jack's sleeping form, thinking maybe he had truly began to sleep alone.

After fifteen minutes of sneaking around sleeping news boys, she realized Jack was gone. In a panic she ran over to Race shaking him awake.

"Race! Race! You have to wake up! Pleeease wake up!" She whispered as loudly as possible, not wanting to wake the whole room.

"Babes? What's a matter with ya?" he mumbled into his pillow.

"It's Jack! He never came back last night!" At this Race lifted his head and looked around, allowing his eyes to adjusted to the small shimmer of light creeping through the window. He finally looked over at Baby, seeing the panic and fear etching her face.

"Baby, don't worry. I'm sure Jack is ok. He is smart. Maybe he stayed away until things cooled down, ya know."

"Maybe.." Baby had to admit, that sounded possible. She just wish she knew where he was.

"Wanna sleep with me?" Race asked.

"What!?" Baby turned and looked at Race like he had gone completely mad.

"No! I just meant, ya know, since Jack isn't here."

Baby gave Race a small smile, understanding he was just trying to be comforting, but still shook her head. "No thanks Race, I'm already up. I'm just going to go up on the roof and get some fresh air." She stood up to leave but stopped, turning back to Race. "If he isn't here by lunch, we are going to look for him."

Race nodded in agreement but his eyes had already begun to close again. As Baby climbed the roof, she couldn't fight the panic off anymore. '_Where could he be?!_'

Jack woke up the next morning with a cramp in his neck and a pain in his butt.

"Did you sleep out there all night?"

He turned to see Sarah looking out her window at him. He glanced around, realizing the he had fallen asleep on the metal fire escape steps. His whole body ached as he turned to look at her, part of him wondering how she could always be smiling like that, especially this early in the morning.

"Why didn't you wake us up?"

"Well, I didn't want to disturb nobody. Anyways, it's like the Waldorf out here; great view, cool air." Jack tried to pretend like standing and moving his arms didn't ache with all the might of being run over by a horse.

Sarah gave him a flirtatious smile and told him to head up to the roof. Jack waited until she had walked away to limp up the steep stairway. He spent a few minutes walking out his legs on the roof before he began punching at laundry, just to get his arms to stop tingling. As he was beginning to loosen up, Sarah arrived with a basket of food.

"Are you hungry?"

"Yea," he replied.

"Good. I made you breakfast." Jack looked down at the break and milk; it had been a long while since he had ever had a proper breakfast. Usually he was stuck receiving warm water and stale bread from the nuns on the street corner.

Jack looked over at Sarah. She was so different from Baby. She wasn't afraid to show her feelings or act like a woman. Baby had lived among the newsies for so long; most people forgot she was a girl. Not that she didn't look the part, she just didn't act it. But Jack liked that about Baby, she wasn't afraid to be herself.

"Papa is so proud of you and David. You should hear him talking about Jack Kelly, the strike leader, who occasionally takes his meals with us," Sarah said, while setting out the food.

"Well this is one strike leader who is going to be very happy when it is all over and I can get out of here and go to Santa Fe. I mean, there is nothing for me to stay for is there," Jack said, trying to hide his anger over the Baby situation. He would give anything to bring her out west with him, but she knew she would never go. She would never feel the same way as him.

Jack looked up at Sarah to see her smile fall. He didn't want to think about Baby anymore, it hurt to much.

"You know, you should see Santa Fe. Everything is different there. Everything is bigger, you know, the desert, and the sky, and the sun."

"It's the same sun as here," Sarah said, turning to him, laughing.

"Yea, it just looks different." Well it looked different in the pictures at least. Jack had never been. Not that anyone else knew that. They all thought he had family out there looking for a ranch. Only Baby knew the truth. '_Stop thinking about her!'_ he told himself again.

"I should, get ready for work," Sarah began to head down when Jack stopped her.

"Sarah, I'm just not use to having whether I stay or whether I go matter to anybody. I'm not saying it should matter to you. I'm just saying, um, but, does it? Matter?"

Sarah looked up at him and smiled. Jack knew she had feelings for him. He could see it in her eyes. She wanted to be with him.

Jack headed back to the lodging house, thinking about things between Sarah and Baby. He was trying to figure out what it was that Baby had, that Sarah was missing. Why he couldn't just give his heart over to Sarah.

When he walked in the door of the lodging house, it was near 10:00 and there was loud banging coming from upstairs. Most of the newsies were gathered downstairs, pretending they didn't hear anything.

"What's going on?" Jack asked. He saw a few newsies turn to him and visually relax. Race came running up to him.

"Jack! Oh thank god you're here. It's Baby. She-"

Jack didn't wait to hear anything more. He stormed up the stairs taking them two at a time. Panic had over taken him, assuming that something was wrong, that she was hurt.

"Baby! Baby! I'm her-"

"JACK.. KELLY..!?" Baby stormed over to him with pour rage dripping. "Where have you been?!"

"I was-" Jack began to back away slowly, but she didn't give him time to answer.

"I waited up for you! You never showed! Then I wake up and you're still gone! Have you any idea how completely worried I was?!"

"But I-" Before he could say anymore, Baby had run into his arms, shaking. He could tell she wasn't crying, there were no tears or wetness on his shoulder. But still, she was shaking. It was as if the fear and raw stress were all emptying from her body at once.

Jack's heart immediately broke. He had never meant to upset her this much.

"Baby." He pulled her back a little, cupping her face, forcing her to look at him. "I will always come back to you."

"I- I just thought, with Snyder, and then-"

"Shhh. I'm not going to let him catch me. I promise."

Baby fell into his arms, taking a deep breath to compose herself. "Don't ever scare me like that again"

"I promise you."


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

The next morning, all of the newsies were running throughout the boroughs, announcing the rally. Jack had asked Baby to go with him to Brooklyn but she decided to stay back. She chose to head over to Medda's and help her out however she could.

Jack and her had met Medda a few years back, shortly after she had become a newsies. Medda looked out for them, like a mother, or a crazy aunt. She never judged them, or looked down on them for being street children. She treated them like equals, which was a rare quality.

Baby spent most of the morning dressing tables and washing glasses. It wasn't as though Medda didn't have enough employees. Baby just wanted to show her appreciation in any way possible.

"Elizabeth, are you going to let me dress you up for Jack this evening?" Medda called down to Baby as she was drying the glasses.

"Right, that is never going to happen Medda. I have a semi clean skirt back at the lodging house, that should do just fine."

"Aw, come on now. Wouldn't you love to see the look on Jack's face if you were all dolled up?"

"He'd probably tell me to go home and change," Baby laughed, knowing he would do just that. Jack never liked girls who were dolled up, he thought they looked like brainless oafs.

"You're probably right," Medda laughed, "besides, he likes you well enough." Medda winked over at Baby, causing her to blush.

"I don't know what you are talking about," Baby mumbled, trying to hide the smile that was fighting its way across her face. "Speak of it though, I better head back and change. People will probably start showing up soon."

Baby hugged Medda and ran out the door. She noticed a few newsies already heading in the direction of Irving Hall, wanting to have the best seats.

While Baby was distracted, looking around, she failed to miss the young girl walking in her direction. Unfortunately the two girls crashed before Baby could take notice.

"Oh! I am so sorry!" Baby jumped up and offer a hand to the girl to help her up. "Are you ok? I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention."

"Oh," the girl was busy brushing dirt off of her pretty white dress, "don't worry about it. I was distracted myself. I think I am be lost."

"Where are you heading, maybe I can help."

"Irving Hall. My brother said he would meet me out front," the girl finally looked up and took notice of Baby.

"Oh! Are you going to the rally too?! I'm excited that there will be more females there! This building is the Hall by the way, the entrance is just on the other side," Baby waved goodbye and took back off in the direction of the lodging house. She wasn't going to let all the boys get the good seats.

It took her nearly five minutes to quickly change and throw her hair up into some form of a messy bun. Just being able to contain it all in one place was asking a lot of her hair. She bounded down the stairs, nearly knocking Skittery over on her way.

"Geez Babe! Where's the fire?" he called out.

Baby skidded to a stop long enough to say "Rally". That was all it took and Skittery smiled and ran out with her.

Jack arrived at the rally with Spot and Brooklyn in tow. He could help but laugh at the 3 foot gap Brooklyn had created to follow behind Spot. He could never figure out how Spot had that much control. Jack always feared he would be over thrown if he ever treated his newsies the way Spot treated his. But still, they all followed him loyally.

When they arrive, David had already reserved a table for all of them. Jack noticed Sarah sitting at the table smiling at him, he returned a brief one and then continued his scan for Baby. It wasn't long before he noticed her bounding in the front door with Skittery. The two of them were laughing wildly at something.

A sting of jealousy hit him so he sat down, looking at the floor in front of him of a moment, trying to contain himself. Spot looked between the two and shook his head, sitting down on the other side of Sarah.

Baby eventually made her way over to the table as Skittery headed off to find Specs. When she got to the table, Jack was still looking at his feet. Before she got a chance to ask him why, someone called out.

"Hey! I know you!" Baby looked up to see the girl she had run into earlier. As she began to put together the pieces of the scene the girl announced, "I'm Sarah." The girl stood and offered a hand out to Baby. Baby slowly shook her hand in return, and turned to look over at Jack, who had finally looked up. He looked between the two girls, with a look of fear dancing in his eyes. It was like he was actively watching his two worlds collide.

"Sarah." Baby returned her look to the girl in front of her. "Hi. Baby." She pointed at herself and took a seat on the other side of David, never removing her eyes from Jack.

Jack shifted uncomfortably, not knowing how to handle the situation. After two minutes burning under Baby's glare he stood up and grabbed her gently by the arm, dragging her out into the foyer.

"Baby. I'm sorry, I didn't know she was coming,' Jack apologized.

Baby stared back at him oddly and bitterly stated, "Why does it matter to me if she comes. She is your _girlfriend_ after all."

"She's not my girlfriend," he placed his free hand on her shoulder, begging her to understand him.

"Doesn't seem that way to me. Seems to me like you like her."

"Well. Yeah. But. I mean. If you-"

"If I what!?" Baby screamed out, grateful that the room was so loud no one could hear her.

"Maybe if you would admit how you feel about me it wouldn't be a problem! Say it! Say you like me!" Jack barked out.

"I," Baby froze. She couldn't. Not like this, not with him yelling.

"Fine, you don't want to admit it, " he pushed her back against a nearby wall and moved in, closing the space between them. "But don't pretend like it doesn't make your skin boil to see me with her. Don't pretend like it doesn't eat you up inside!"

Baby shift her head to the side, refusing to look him. She knew that if she did, he would see every truth in her eyes. Jack pushed himself off the wall and started to walk away. He paused and turned back to her, calming down. "Don't pretend with me, because I know how it feels. I feel it every time you're with Skittery." Jack walked off back into the crowd.

Baby collapsed on the floor, hating herself for being too scared to speak up. She watched him put on a smile and pretend to the world like everything was okay. But she could see in his eyes that part of him was broken. She jump up and ran in, determined to fix the situation, to apologize, to admit, to do anything.

"Jack!" she cried out, he stopped and turned to her, but David had grabbed on to his arm and was dragging him up to the stage. It was too late.

As the speech was given, Baby struggled to make her way back through the room but it was no use. People had begun to pile forward, trying to hear every word. At some point, she just stopped trying, figuring that she would wait until it was over, talk to him then. Explain everything.

But as the boys finished, Medda took the stage. Suddenly the crowd of young men pilling closer to hear, had begun swinging about, singing along at the top of their lungs.

The next few moments, all happened in a whirl. One minute, Baby was about midway through the room, making her way towards Jack who was dancing with Medda. The next moment Spot was dragging her sideways across the room towards the back stage door.

"What are you-" she started to scream over the crowd at him but the sound of whistles began to drown her out. She froze and turned to see police officers storming the room. She could make out Jack trying to get away. She started to call out to him when Spot jerked her forward through the doorway.

"Spot! We have to go help Jack! What are you doing?!" She fought against him in the hallway, trying to get back out to the main room.

"No," he calmly demanded. "You need to go hide."

"Hide?! But Jack. We-"

"WE don't need to do anything! You need to hide. Go back into the dressing rooms, they'll think you work here." He shoved her forward and blocked her path when she tried to run back out. "BABY! Listen to me! I'll go help Jack. But he would want you safe! NOW GO!"

Baby paused for a moment. She looked back and forth between Spot and the door way. When she looked at him, she knew she wasn't going to win. Baby stepped forward and looked hard at Spot, "You better bring him back."

With that she turned and headed back to the dressing room area to hide. She didn't hear Spot mumble, "I promise". She didn't see him slip back out. She just ran to Medda's room and hid behind a privacy shade.

It wasn't long before Medda was carted into her room by maid and stage manager. Baby jumped out and ran to Medda, holding on to her for dear life.

"Elizabeth! How did you-"

"Did you see Jack? Is he okay?!"

"I- I don't know, dear."

Author's Note::

I am so so sorry for the long update! I am literally on my last semester of college and I have one final essay to write and it is taking up all my energy. But I did want to shot this one out for you wonderful readers! Enjoy!


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Baby paced across Medda's dressing room for over an hour. Medda remained sitting at her vanity, slipping whiskey to help calm her nerves. The two remained silent, hoping for some sign of news, anything to let them know that the boys were ok. But no sign came.

When the sounds of the theater slowly died down for the night, no sign came.

When the sun began to peak through the window, no sign came.

When the jostling sound of workers cleaning up from the previous night filled the air, no sign came.

In fact it was nearly lunch time before they finally got word. A soft knock at the door caused both women to jump up in shock. They both froze, not really knowing if they could trust who was on the other side of the door, not knowing if they wanted to know the truth.

After a moment of silence, the door creaked open.

"Medda? Baby? You two in here?" Spot stuck his head around the frame slowly.

"Spot! You are alright! How are the others? Did you all get out okay?" Medda jumped up and hugged the boy, attacking him with questions without giving him a chance to respond.

Spot looked over Medda's shoulders and locked eyes with Baby. She knew in that moment that it was Jack. She grabbed her chest and sat down on a nearby fainting couch trying desperately to breath. She felt as though her chest was failing her; as though her lungs no longer worked.

Spot detached himself from Medda and walked over to Baby, placing a hand on her shoulder. "I tried my best, but we were all surrounded. He is in the refuge now; three years."

Baby froze and looked up into Spot's eyes. She could see the sorrow that he felt, but at that moment, it meant nothing to her. She stood up, eye to eye with Spot, and shoved him as hard as she could. He fell backward over Medda's vanity stool, causing Medda to shriek and jump to help him up. If Baby was not so furious, she would have laughed that she had just caused the 'almighty Spot Conlon' to fall on his bum.

Spot jumped up, attempting to regain some sense of control in the situation. "What the hell was that for?!" he yelled at her.

"You were suppose to help him!" she shoved him again but this time he was ready for it. "You said you would bring him back!" she shoved again. "I thought I could trust you!" She began pounding on his chest, but lack of sleep and emotional stress caused her to do little more damage than a toddler as she broke down and started to cry.

Spot awkwardly hugged her in an attempt to comfort her. He looked back at Medda pleading for assistance. Medda remained frozen for a moment, shocked at Baby's emotional outpour. She had know Baby for years now and had never seen her show this kind of emotion.

Medda looked back over at Spot who looked like he might scream at any moment. Taking pity on the poor boy, Medda cautiously walked over to Baby and peeled her off of him. "Shh, Baby. Everything will be fine. You know Jack, he will be out in no time."

"Denton is having lunch with the boys over at Tibby's. He paid for all of us to get out, maybe he is working to get Jack out too," Spot supplied.

Baby looked up to Spot with hope in her eyes. "You really think so?"

"It's possible," he looked toward Medda and the two shared a look. If Denton was able to buy Jack's way out, we would have already. But neither of them wanted to admit that to Baby.

Medda reached over and gave Baby a small hug, "Go with Spot and find out what is going on and let me know. And Baby, be strong, I know you can handle anything."

Baby pulled back and gave Medda a small smile. She knew she had to be strong, for Jack.

By the time Spot and Baby got back to the lodging house, David was in the foyer ranting about Denton and a plan. The room fell silent when they walked in, no one really knowing what to say.

"So," Baby attempted to break the awkward silence, "When are we getting Jack back?"

David gave a small smile, "We are breaking him out tonight."

"But what about Denton?" Baby questioned.

"He abandoned us," David spat out.

Baby looked around the room, everyone seemed stressed and angry, losing Jack affected everyone. "Well, let's hear the plan then!" Baby spoke out, hoping to get everyone's spirits up. They all spent the rest of the afternoon planning and replanning the escape. David took lead and worked to come up with five different alternate plans, just to make sure they covered any possible circumstance.

As night fell, a small group left, leaving everyone else to wait anxiously. Baby went out on the fire escape; she couldn't handle listening to everyone question and debate the success of the group. However, they weren't gone long. In fact, it was under thirty minutes when most of them returned.

Baby remained outside the window, listening to them explain how Jack was being escorted somewhere and David followed.

"So," Spot crawled out onto the fire escape and sat down next to Baby. "Sounds like it is all up to the Walking Mouth."

Baby looked over at him, partly considering what he just said, partly wondering when she had given him permission of join her. She thought about responding, but there was nothing left for either of them to say.

They sat in silence for over an hour, just staring out at the city. They almost didn't even notice the calm that fell in the bunkroom behind them. When they turned they saw David walk in, alone. He looked around the room but didn't say a word. His eyes fell on Baby and he began to head in her direction. Blink jumped up to intercept him, wanting to hear the news, but David just kept moving forward across the room.

He climbed out onto the fire escape and shut the window. Baby could see that something had him tense, more so that she had ever seen from the boy.

"What happened, Dave? Did ya fail?" Spot remarked harshly.

"No. I got him out." David replied tightly.

Baby stood up and forced David to turn and look at her. "You did! Where is he?"

"You know him better than anyone else, Baby." David was refusing to look her in the eye but there was something about his mannerism, like pure rage was pouring from him. "Can you explain why he wouldn't want to escape?" At this, David finally looked up into Baby's eyes. He wanted to know what he was missing, what he didn't understand.

"What?!" Baby look a small step back and sat down on the step. She didn't understand.

"What are you saying Dave?" Spot demanded.

"I'm saying, I helped him escape but he chose to go back!" Dave barked out. The three newsies stood in shocked silence, not knowing where to go from here.

Author's Note:

Reviews are wonderful, just saying! ;p


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

No one knew what Jack was up to, but everyone assumed he must have had some sort of a plan; everyone but Baby.

She had begun to think that it was her fault. A small part of her wondered if he was choosing the refuge to avoid her. She never got to talk to him the day of the rally, to respond to him about how she felt. Over the course of the next morning, she began to swallow herself alive with guilt.

She remained silent as the newsies began forming outside of the distribution center. They had planned to continue stopping the scabs until they could end the strike. They all fought for Jack, knowing that he wouldn't want to be locked up for nothing, even if no one could understand why he was locked up.

But when they arrived at the distribution center, something seemed off. There were policemen and World employees scattered everywhere.

As small arguments and fights broke out, the older newsboys worked to keep everyone in line. Then it happened. Baby saw before anyone else. Inside the distribution center, dressed in brand new clothes, was a clean cut Jack holding a stack of papers. As he began to walk out, others in the crowd took notice. She turned and started to walk away, not even bothering to wait for his explanation. Nothing he could say would change the fact that he had just betrayed all of his friends, all the people that followed him, that believed in him.

Jack watch Baby walk away. He wanted to call out to her but he knew she would never listen. He barely recognized Spot yelling out death threats, or David righteously ranting. He knew how it looked to everyone, like he was abandoning everyone. But the truth was, he was doing the right thing. He lost his family. He knew too many who had lost family. He wouldn't watch David lose his as well.

Jack only wished he could go chase after Baby, explain to her what he was doing. He knew she would understand. She gave up her family so that they wouldn't be burdened with another mouth to feed. But Baby was long gone.

He felt Weasel grab his arm and begin directing him through the crowd of newsies, all attempting to reach over and hit him. He couldn't blame them. He waited until he was far enough away from the crowd to break out into a run for the lodging house. He ran upstairs, hoping to find Baby but the room was empty. He checked their secret spot but it too was empty.

As he headed back into the room he walked over to his bunk, clearing out all of his belongings. He couldn't stay here, not like he would really be welcome at the moment. He left out the fire escape when he heard a group of footsteps plowing up the stairwell.

That day he walked around with his papers in one hand, and his belongings in the other. He never once called a headline, or offered to sell a paper. In fact, when asked to sell he would just keep walking. He agreed to work for Pulitzer; he never agreed to do it well.

Meanwhile, Baby spent the day over at Medda's. She actually spent two hours at the bar before Medda even knew she was there.

"Baby? What are you doing my dear?" Medda asked gently.

Baby looked over at Medda through hazy eyes. The cheap wine caused her words to slur as she explained how Jack had betrayed everyone.

Medda couldn't believe that Jack had done that. Of course, she also couldn't believe that Baby was drinking.

"Sweetie, do you want me to send for one of the boys to come get you?" Medda asked, concerned for the poor girl drowning her sorrows.

"No! No. I don't want to see any of them," she slurred. "I'm done with newsies. 'Improvin the truth'? They don't improve anything! They just lie and break our hearts." Baby droned on before chugging the rest of her wine.

Medda reached over and placed a gentle hand on the small girl, knowing she didn't really mean all newsies. "Drinking won't solve anything, dear."

"No. But it helps me to forget," Baby replied before ordering another. The bartender paused and waited for Medda's approval. Medda nodded and stood up.

As the bartender poured the next glass she turned to Baby. "I'll be in the back if you need anything." With that she walked away, knowing that there was nothing she could do but let Baby hit rock bottom. Only then could the girl begin to pick herself back up again.

Baby didn't even notice as Medda's seat was taken by another. "See you got a head start." Sot replied dryly, ordering a drink for himself.

Baby glanced over, not saying a word. When his drink came, Spot offered a toast, "To betrayal." Baby smirked and returned the toast. It was going to be a long evening.

Jack woke up in the basement of the distribution center. It definitely had not been the most comfortable night of his life.

When he grabbed his morning papers, he planned another eventful day of not selling. He was hoping that the strike would be over soon so he could leave. He was torn between wanting to face Baby, and wanting to run away in fear.

He didn't know what to say to her. They had left things in an awkward place during the rally. He laid everything out but she didn't respond. He knew she felt something but she was scared. Right now, he just wanted her to forgive him.

Jack was lost in his thoughts when he heard someone scream. It was definitely a female. He took off, instinctually thinking that it was Baby, that she was in danger, that she needed him.

As he rounded the corner, his eyes fell upon David being attacked by the Delancy brothers. Sarah was huddled in the corner with Les. Jack took action, not wanting to see his friends in danger. Jack attacked Morris, knocking him into a pile of crates. Oscar jumped forward but Jack grabbed a hold of his shirt.

"This is for Crutchy," he called out before head-butting Oscar. Before he could move forward and do anything more, Sarah launched her arms around his neck and pulled him in for a hug.

Oscar and Morris took the opportunity to run out, threatening to expose Jack.

"What, couldn't stay away?" David bitterly asked Jack.

"Well, I guess I can be something I ain't" Jack replied.

"A Scab?"

"No. Smart."

"If you're so smart, then why did you betray us all?" David asked.

"I had my reasons Dave, trust me."

David looked at Jack carefully, before giving him a small nod. David figured that now wasn't the time to bring up that everyone was out looking for Baby. She had been missing since yesterday afternoon.

"Come on, let's go back to the house. There is something I want to show you boys," said Sarah. Jack and David looked over at one another, both knowing that more needed to be said, but now was not the time.

Author's Note:

So I hope you all don't hate me yet. I promised things will be falling into place…..eventually.


	14. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

"Come on, Sarah. Just tell us what this is all about?" David asked as they entered his family's apartment.

"It's about Denton, David. You really need to read what he wrote." She headed into their shared bedroom and reached underneath her pillow to pull out a crumpled piece of paper.

"I don't want to read anything that traitor wrote!" Jack watch as the two began to bicker. He grabbed the letter and began to read, ignoring the fight taking place before him. Sarah was right, this could help. Denton's article was uniting the Newsie Strike to all child labor. If they could bring together all the kids of New York, they would be unstoppable!

"Dave, read it. Do you think this could work?" Jack shoved the paper into David's hands as the boy looked back incredulously.

"He abandoned us Jack! Why should we listen to anything he has to say?" David argued.

"Just read it," Jack responded calmly. He sat down and looked out the window, part of him hoping that he would see Baby walking by on the street below.

David cautiously looked down at the paper. If Denton was right, they could actually stand a chance of winning this strike, once and for all. David looked between Sarah and Jack. Sarah had a triumphant glow about her, just waiting to announce that she had been right. Meanwhile Jack looked like he would rather be one hundred miles away. There was still so much that Jack wasn't telling them.

"Jack, about Baby.." David figured now was as good of time as any.

"Not now," Jack cut him off. "I'm not rea-"

"Oh no! Did she get arrested too?" Sarah interrupted. Jack jumped up, suddenly needing to know.

"What? No. She was never caught. But.." David supplied.

"I think my brother has a crush on her." Sarah playfully winked at her brother. At this Jack turned hateful eyes in the direction of his friend.

David cowered away and quickly put his hands up in defense. "What?! Sarah! Are you out of your mind?! I don't like Baby like that!"

"Well then why are you always talking to me about her and Jack?" Sarah questioned in innocence.

David looked over at Jack. There was an awkward pause between the two boys before Jack headed out on to the fire escape to get some fresh air. He couldn't blame David; he was only trying to protect his friend, and his sister. David must have been trying to explain to Sarah how important Baby was to Jack. That way she wouldn't get hurt.

But Jack didn't know what he wanted. He didn't know where he and Baby stood. He didn't know if he wanted to try with Sarah. All he knew was that he didn't want to hurt anyone.

David peaked his head through the window. "Come on, Jack. Let's go talk to Denton. We can deal with this later." Jack nodded and climbed back through the window. He glanced over at a confused Sarah and hung his head down. After everything was cooled down with the strike, he would sit her down, talk to her, and explain how he felt, explain about Baby. But now wasn't the time. Now, they all needed to focus on ending the strike.

Baby woke up with a headache the size of a mountain. The unfamiliar noises of clanking and piano tuning told her she wasn't home. When she finally cracked open her eyes, the deep red wallpaper and musky smell of perfume told her she was still at Medda's.

It was odd that she couldn't remember falling asleep here, but then, Baby never was much of a drinker. Her pounding headache reminded her why she had always avoided the stuff.

After a few moments, she finally found the motivation to try and sit up. When she did, the world around her began to spin. She tried to steady her head to regain control and that is when she saw him. Spot was lying in the bed next to her, shirtless and very much asleep. Tried as she did, she could not remember anything about last night, much less Spot even being there.

She looked down and noticed her own clothes seemed to be missing from her person. She quickly grabbed the top sheet and stood up, ignoring the spinning room.

"Spot?! What the hell? What are you.. What are we..? Did we? Oh god" She screamed out hysterically, causing the boy to wake up in a bolt.

He grabbed his head and looked over at Baby, screaming at him from the other side of the room. "What? Oh…crap.. No. No no no no no. Tell me we didn't." He put his head in his hands, trying to remember anything about the night before.

"Oh my god," Baby sat down in the nearby chaise lounge in shock.

"Jack is going to _kill_ me." Spot muttered.

"What? No! You aren't going to tell ANYONE about this! _This_, never happened!" Baby barked out. She began to search around the room for her missing garments.

"So, what, you just want to lie about it?" Spot asked, grabbing his shirt from the bedpost.

"It isn't lying if it never happened! We don't know for a fact that it did!" Baby rationalized.

"Babes, I'm pretty sure.."

"No! If I don't remember it, it never happened!" She called out as she shimmied into her pants.

"Maybe I should just go back to Brooklyn. Might be better if we didn't-"

"Yes! Brooklyn is a great idea! You go there, and I will just go back home. No one will suspect a thing."

Spot stood up awkwardly and walked across the room. The two starred at each other for a moment.

"Do we hug? Or what?" Spot questioned.

Baby stuck out her hand and waited for Spot to do the same. She causally shook his hand before calling out, "Good Day Mr. Conlon" and bolted out the doorway behind her.

She couldn't believe that had happened! If Jack ever found out.. _No! He won't find out. No one will._

Baby ran back to the lodging house, knocking over Race as she ran in the front door.

"Baby! Where have you been? We've had people out looking for you all night!"

Guilt began to swarm over her. She felt terrible. And her hangover wasn't making anything better.

"I'm sorry, Race. I just needed to clear my head." She hurried passed him and up the stairs. She began to feel like the world was spinning and trying to swallow her whole.

She laid down on her bunk, trying to prevent herself from emptying the contents of her stomach, when Skittery walked over to her bunk and sat on the end.

He didn't meet her eyes, just kept starring at his shoe tips. "So, how was Medda's?" he asked.

Baby looked over at him in panic. _Does he know? Did he see me? Did he tell anyone?!_

"I saw you there with Conlon," he supplied at her silence. "You two seemed to be quite, friendly."

Baby buried her head into her pillow. "Skittery. I promise. I was upset, and drinking, and it didn't mean anything, I swear! Please don't tell anyone," she pleaded.

"Don't worry, I didn't say anything. I don't know if you remember but I tried to get you to come home with me last night. You shoved me away."

"You did?" Baby sat up slowly, happy for any information from the night before.

"Yeah, I went and grabbed Medda. She got the spare rooms for you two. We figured letting you both sleep it off would have been the best idea. Thankfully she had separate rooms available. Can you imagine what would have happened if I didn't show up in time?" Skittery playfully poked her shoulder and gave her a wink and stood up, leaving her to get some rest.

"Yeah, lucky us." Baby mumbled as she laid her head back down on the pillow.

Author's Notes:

insert me ducking from any blunt objects that might be thrown my way


	15. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

As David and Jack headed back towards the lodging house, Jack's mind was filled with thoughts of Baby. He wondered how long it would take her to forgive him. As they walked, he glanced over at Sarah. She was subtly trying to walk just a bit closer to him after every turn.

While she wasn't his normal type of girl, it was a pleasant surprise to find a girl so openly willing to wear her heart on her sleeve.

As they got to the entrance, David held out his arm to stop Jack. "Jack, maybe I should go in alone."

"No, I want to explain to everyone, even you. I need them to hear me out." Jack moved past David and marched through the front door.

The lodging house stopped, no one moved, no one called out. All eyes just froze on Jack.

"You got some nerve," said Race, being the first one to regain his senses. He walked forward and shoved Jack hard.

Before everyone else could join in on the assault David called out, "Stop! We have a plan! Just let him explain."

Race looked over at David, trying to understand why he was defending him. "You want _us_ to listen to _him_?"

"Please, just give him a chance," pleaded David.

"Fine. But don't even try lying to us Cowboy. Baby can tell whenever you're lying." Race gave one last shove into Jack's chest and turned to head up the stairs.

"Oh good! You guys finally found her?' David called out to Race in relief.

"She just came back about an hour ago."

At this Jack turned to David and grabbed his collar. "She was missing?! Why didn't ya tell me?!" he growled.

"You said you didn't want to talk about her," David answered. He pulled away from Jack and started to follow the crowd of newsboys up the stairwell. Jack remained frozen at the bottom. He didn't know if he could face her yet.

"Come on, Jack." Sarah grabbed his arm and began pulling him up the stairs."So is Baby like your sister or something?" All of the newsies around the pair began to laugh and shake their heads as they reached the top of the stairs.

Baby had no idea what was going on but she was close to killing the next person she could reach. Her head was pounding, the room had only just stopped spinning, and for some reason, every newsie in Manhattan was pilling into the bunk room.

When she finally sat up, she saw Race walking to her bed. He offered her a hand up and whispered, "He's back," into her ear.

She turned to see Jack walk through the doorway, with Sarah on his arm. As soon as they met eyes, Jack pulled away and walked in her direction. She took a step back and moved behind Race.

"So, let's hear your explanation, Cowboy. Let's hear why you sold us all out?" Race bitterly barked out.

Jack looked between Baby and Race, settling on dealing with Race first.

"Pulitzer offered me a deal-" Jack began.

"Yeah. We kinda figured that part out on our own," Race interjected.

"Yeah, but you probably only figured out half of the deal," Jack returned, trying to gain dominance over the conversation. "He threatened David and his family, threatened to throw all of you in the refuge with me. I did what I did for you. To keep you all free to finish the strike!" Jack was screaming out, frustrated at everything. He looked over at Baby and locked eyes with her. "I did it for you," he ended dejectedly.

Race turned to look at Baby, waiting for her response. She gave a curt nod and walked over to the fire escapewindow.

"Baby! Wait!" Jack chased after her but she stopped him at the window.

"Jack, I can. I- just leave me alone." With that she crawled outside and headed up for the roof. Baby may be able to fake having no emotions; she may even be able to pretend she only thinks of Jack as a friend. But the one thing she could never do was lie to Jack.

When she got to the roof she ran to the edge and gripped on tight. Here was Jack, finally making a move at a future together and she was flooded with guilt from the night before.

It wasn't long before she heard footsteps climbing up the stairs behind her. She didn't want to turn and face him. She knew if she did he was see it all in her eyes.

"Baby?" he asked gently, placing a hand on her shoulder slowly turning her to face him. "I'm so sorry. I wanted to tell you sooner. I just couldn't find you anywhere."

Baby began to cry. She couldn't hold back the tears anymore.

"Please don't cry," he tried to wipe a few from her face. "I'm here now, I promised you I'd always come back."

Baby couldn't take it anymore. He was being too perfect. She shoved off from him and walked away a few steps before freezing.

"You left us, Jack." She dared to turn and face him for the first time since being on the roof. "You left and we didn't know why!" she cried out.

"But I'm back now," he tried to move closer but she just backed away again.

"No, you don't understand! I screwed up! Not you."

"Baby what are you talking about? How did you screw up? You're not the one who left?" Jack was confused; nothing she was saying made any sense.

"I SLEPT WITH SPOT!" she called out. As soon as the words left her she covered her mouth in horror.

Jack froze on the roof. Of all the things he thought she would say, of all the ways he thought she would react, nothing prepared him for this moment. It was as though the universe was crashing around him.

He took a step back, shaking his head in disbelief. "What?"

"Jack, I'm sorry. I was. I thought." There was nothing she could say.

Jack hung his head and walked away. As he left the roof, Baby collapsed onto the floor.

Author's Note:

Okay. I'm all teary eyed now.

Side Note: I am looking to create two new stories once this one is complete. I am looking for a character that would be combatable with David. In the past I've always tried to borrow amazing characters from loyal readers who want to be included in a story. (May also need one for Race) So if any readers out there are in love with those two boys and want to be in a story, just shoot me a pm; but I promised I am finishing this story first!


	16. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Jack walked back into the bunk room in a stunned silence. He didn't notice Skittery sitting just outside the window. He barely noticed Race as he walked past him and down onto the street. He leaned into the wall of the building, trying to make sense of everything.

As images of Baby and Spot filled his mind he started to punch the brick wall with all his force. He didn't hear David follow him but he allowed the boy to pull him away from the wall.

"Jack?! Jack! What's going on?" David looked over at his friend with concern.

"She.." Jack stopped and pulled his bleeding hands through his hair.

"Why don't we get out of here? Sun is about to set and we told Denton we'd meet him outside the distribution center." When Jack didn't budge, he added, "You two just both need some time." Jack looked over at David incredulously.

"You don't get it! She.."

The boys were interrupted by Sarah arriving. "Is everything okay?" Jack threw his hands up in the air and began walking in the direction of the distribution center.

"What's going on with him and his friend?" Sarah whispered to her brother.

"I'm not sure. I've never seen those two fight." The pair began following behind Jack, giving him space to cool down.

Baby remained on the roof, creating a pool of tears in her lap. When she heard footsteps climbing the stairs she jumped up, hoping it was Jack.

"Jack. I'm so so sorry. I-" but then she realized it was Skittery, coming up with his hand in his pockets.

"So," there was an awkward pause as he crossed the roof. "I guess I should have stayed at Medda's last night."

"Oh god," Baby flew her hands to her face, feeling a hot flush taking over. "You all heard."

"No, just me. I was sitting near the window when you screamed it out to the world."

Baby collapse against the safety wall of the roof, "What am I going to do Skits?"

He sat down next to her. "Do you have feeling for Conlon?"

"What?! Gods no! It's a good day if I don't try to smother him in his sleep," she cried out, revolted at the thought of feeling anything for that slimy womanizer.

"Why didn't you tell Jack that?"

"Would _you_ have listened?" she rebutted.

"Good point," Skittery looked up at the stars starring to shine, wishing he could help. "Maybe Medda could help? She's always pretty good with advice."

"Maybe.."

Skittery looked over at the poor girl beside him. She looked so broken. "Come on," he stood up, pulling her along with him. "You need a good night's rest."

When they returned to the bunk room, Baby crawled into her own bunk. No one dared disturb her. They may not have known what happened on the roof between her and Jack, but they knew enough to know that it was nothing good.

The newsies all woke up early the next morning, earlier than usual. They headed out to the distribution center before any World employees showed up. They spent all morning hawking the headlines, but this time, it was their own. They spread out across New York, hoping to gain enough support before the end of the day.

But Baby stayed in bed. She didn't want to face Jack. She stared at the bunk above hers for hours, debating all of the different ways she could try to make things right. It wasn't until the memory of whose bunk that was came to mind, that Baby finally bolted up and moved to a new bunk.

She wanted to forget what had happened, which was odd since she couldn't even remember what happened. After struggling between trying to find a way to have Jack forgive, and find a way to remember what happened, Baby gave up and finally got moving.

Skittery's idea to talk to Medda was better than torturing herself. She made it to Irving Hall taking as many back alleys as she could, not wanting to face any over the newsies.

When she got in, Medda was just finishing rehearsal on stage. "Baby, I figured you'd be out with the boys handing out the Banner for today's rally."

"No. Medda, I need some advice."

Medda took one look at the shattered girl and knew that she had finally reached bottom. "Come, tell me everything."

Medda poured them both a cup of tea and sat on the lounge next to Baby. Baby looked down at the tea and mused over everything that had happened.

"So, you and Spot, huh?" Medda asked.

"Apparently," Baby responded miserably.

"Let me guess. You told Jack and now you want to figure out how to get him to forgive you."

Baby looked over at Medda in shock.

"Please. You don't think you're the only one to make stupid mistakes when you're upset, do you?"

She let a small smirk slip by, "So what do I do Medda?"

It was near noon and most of the newsies were gathered in Greely Square. They had asked any supporters to show up but at the moment, they were alone.

"So when's the others coming Kid?" Mush asked Blink.

"They ain't coming," Jack responded grumpily."Ain't going to be nobody but us," Jack began to look around the Square. He didn't know if he was more upset that Baby wasn't there, or glad that she wasn't.

Suddenly the Square began to fill with kids or all ages; all abandoning work to join with the newsies. Chants of 'strike' began to fill the air. Someone cried out 'Brooklyn!' and Jack turned to see Spot pouring in with Queens and Brooklyn newsies.

Jack's blood began to boil. It took every ounce of him not to cross the square and pummel Spot. But as the square began to fill with more and more children, Jack was pushed in the direction of the World Building.

Baby watched from the roof of the Irving Hall with Medda. They could barely make out the figure of Jack entering the World Building below.

"Why don't you go to him; he needs you."

Baby looked over at Medda then glanced back down at Jack's back right before the door closed. In the next moment she was bounding down the fire escape stairs two at a time, jumping whole sets when she could. She needed to get to Jack.

Author's Note:

I know. I am updating a lot today. I'm sorry but I just have to get these ideas down before I forget them all!

Thank you so much for the reviews guys! It really means so much to me that you are all sticking with me. It is encouraging to know someone other than me is reading this.

Huge thank you to: lizziestrong7135, Lex the klutz Richarson, Ealasaid Una, and LovesBrooklyn for your continued support over the past few days!


	17. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

When Jack exited the World building with the news of victory, the entire square began to cheer out at once.

Their triumph had lifted the spirits of all the kids in New York. Add in the bonus of getting Crutchy back and being able to see Snyder thrown into the jail cart, and Jack should have been excited. He should have been able to join in the celebrations. Even the arrival of Governor Roosevelt in their support couldn't snap Jack out of it.

He couldn't get her out of his mind. He looked around the square, hoping to see her. But even if she was there, the crowds were still too thick.

"The Governor is very grateful you brought this problem to his attention," said Denton, knocking Jack out of his thoughts. "I said you might need a lift somewhere, he'd be happy to oblige, anywhere you want. And this time, you ride inside." Denton winked over at Jack.

Jack looked back at the carriage. He could go anywhere he wanted. But anywhere he went would be remind him of her."So, uh, could he drop me at the train yards?"

Everyone around Jack began to whisper. He couldn't blame them but at that moment, there was nothing he could say to any of them, nothing that would make any sense to them.

He pushed past Skittery on his way towards the lodging house. He didn't notice the small form following him. He was so lost in his thoughts that it wasn't until he was in the bunkroom that he even heard the second pair of footsteps on the stairs.

Jack turned and saw Baby walked through the door. Jack pause in his efforts to pack up his belongings.

"So, that's it then?" she asked. "You're just going to leave?"

"Well it ain't like there's anything for me to stay for." Jack grabbed his last shirt and threw it into his pillowcase.

"Jack. I'm sorry." She crossed the room to what had once been their bunk.

"You don't get it Liz," he ran his free hand through his hair. "I told you how I felt, and you just.. with him.."

"I know. I thought-, we all thought you had betrayed us. Not that that is an excuse." She looked down at her shoes, wishing she had given thought to how this conversation would have gone before blindly plowing into it.

"No, you don't understand. Just the thought of you and him, of you and anyone else.. you don't understand how that feels!"

"Jack, I-"

"Just leave me alone." And with that Jack headed back down the stairs.

Skittery had been waiting outside the lodging house. When he saw Jack barrel out the front door, he moved to stop him.

"Jack, wait! Think about what you're doing man."

"Skittery, stay out of it!" Jack shoved the boy to the side but Skittery bounced right back in Jack's way, blocking him.

"She made a mistake. But she loves _you_!"

Jack finally stopped and looked at the boy. Skittery took this as encouragement. "Don't leave like this," he pleaded.

"She loves me? Then why can't she say it?" Jack argued.

"She's just scared. You need to make her do it."

"_I_ need to make _her_? I've done enough! You know what, I'm sick of this. She can't admit how she feels, it's her problem! NOT MINE!" Jack yelled out before storming passed Skittery.

Jack walked back through the crowd to Roosevelt's carriage. He didn't even stop to say anything to any of his fellow newsies. As the carriage pulled out, Jack waved goodbye to everyone, to all of his problems. Maybe a new life was what he needed.

Skittery ran upstairs to find Baby sitting on the edge of a bunk. She was just staring blankly ahead, in shock. Her mind hadn't even begun to process the fact that Jack was gone and possibly never coming back.

"Baby! Come on! You have to get up!" Skittery reach down and pulled her up.

"What? Skittery, what are you doing?"

"We have to go, if we hurry we can get to the train station before it is too late!" with that Skittery began to drag Baby out of the lodging house.

When they got to the square, they realized it was too late. There was no way they were going to make it through the crowd. Baby walked over to an empty barrel outside of the distribution center and plopped down. She could believe he was gone. Everything became numb.

"Don't give up yet Babes. Maybe once the crowd clears a bit.."

As the carriage left the crowds of people, Jack turned to look at Governor Roosevelt. It was slightly awkward being alone in a carriage with him.

"So, the train yards is it? What are you running from son? You won!" Roosevelt mused.

"Nothing," Jack looked down at his bandana hanging around his neck. He could remember the day Baby bought it for him. He grabbed on to it, making sure it was still tightly fastened.

"Ah. So, who is she?" Roosevelt asked causing Jack to look up in shock.

"How did you know?"

"Boy, when you are as old as me, you learn that there is always a woman involved. I'd be lost without my dear Edith."

"Well, Baby is, complicated."

"Baby?"

"Sorry, her name's really Liz, we all just call her Baby."

"Ah. So why are you running away from her?"

Jack looked out at the passing buildings, trying to figure out how to explain. "She just, she can't admit how she feels," he finished lamely. If it wasn't awkward enough to be sitting in a carriage with Governor Roosevelt, talking about girls with him was definitely making this one of the strangest trips Jack had ever been on.

"You know, I find that jealously can be a great motivator," Roosevelt winked over at Jack. "Edith and I use to be childhood friends. She wouldn't give me the time of day when we were younger. But as soon as I married my first wife Alice, God rest her soul, Edith finally took notice." Roosevelt let out a hearty laugh.

"You know, Jack. I really am impressed with your work. It takes a lot of guts to stand up to a man like Joseph Pulitzer. Any one capable of doing _that_ is sure to come up with a way to win a woman."

After another block in silence, Jack turned to Roosevelt, "Sir, think there is any way we can head back?"

Roosevelt smiled at the boy and issues the order to his driver.

Jack was going to find a way to make Baby admit the truth.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

AHHHHH I am having too much fun writing this! I hope you all are still liking the story.


	18. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Skittery walked into the distribution center with all the others. He found Baby still sitting on the barrel. "Babe come on! The crowds are dying down."

He tried to pull her up but she ripped her hand away, "No. If he.. I can't.. It's too much."

Skittery looked down at the poor girl. Her world was falling apart and she was breaking. Skittery looked up at the small line of newsies waiting to gather their papes.

"I have an idea, I'll be right back!" Skittery ran up the steps to the line. He planned on getting Baby to sell with him, and casually walking her in the direction of the train yards. He wasn't going to sit and watch his friend get hurt.

Meanwhile, Baby barely took notice that Skittery left. Of course she barely took notice that she hadn't moved an inch. He tried to shut out the world. That way she could forget that he was gone.

However, it was becoming progressively harder to shut out the world when shouts and cheers started to refill the square. Baby looked up, in a mixture of shock and hope as she saw the red feathered horses of Roosevelt's carriage pull back into the distribution center.

"Thanks for the advice Governor. Like you said, I still got things to do." Jack looked around and found Baby staring back at him in frozen awe. He exhaled then looked to David, "Besides, I still got family here."

He had a plan, he only wished he had time to talk to David about it.

"Hey you, Skittery!" Jack called out.

Skittery looked over, confused. Jack pulled the boy close and whispered. "You said I needed to make her see? Well then watch this." Jack winked back at the confused boy then began to search the crowd, hoping to find her.

Right on cue, Sarah could be seen parting her way through the crowd. Jack gave a small smile and pulled her into him. He planted a kiss on her, right in the middle of the crowd for all to see. Sarah seemed a bit shocked at first, but in no time she returned the kiss.

Jack pulled away and whispered, "I'm sorry. I'll explain later." Jack looked around; hoping to find Baby, to see if she saw, but he couldn't see her anywhere.

He did, however, see Spot. Somehow Spot had swindled his way into a carriage ride with Roosevelt. As the crowd began to cheer for the Brooklyn leader, Jack bitterly called out, "Go back to Brooklyn!"

Spot turned to give Jack and odd look. When he turned back around he saw Baby running down the street. He tried to signal the driver to stop, but when he looked again she had disappeared.

He sat back down. _Maybe I'm not the best person to go after her. I'll leave it to Jack to sort out_.

Jack threw his arm around Sarah and began leading her out of the distribution center. He wanted to talk to her in private before she got hurt.

"I can't believe you almost left!" Sarah preened.

"Yeah. Just had a lot on my mind." Jack steered them towards a bench outside the square. "Sarah, there is something I need to tell you."

"It's about Baby, isn't it?" Jack looked over at Sarah and gave a small nod. "It wasn't too hard to figure out you two have a connection. I don't get it. If you love her, why did you just kiss me?"

"It's just.. I'm so frustrated." Jack ran his hands across his face. "She's impossible."

Sarah let out a sigh and looked down at her lap, smiling and shaking her head. "So you kissed me to make her jealous."

"Yeah, I mean no! I mean, I don't know. Look, I'm real sorry. I shouldn't have."

"No, you shouldn't have. _And_, you should have told me sooner." She looked over at him pointedly before smiling. "But.. I understand. Thank you for being honest with me Jack." She placed her hand on his arm.

"You know, you're kind of amazing," Jack threw his arm around her.

"So what are you going to do now?"

"I have no idea. I guess, wait and see."

"You could try talking to her," Sarah suggested.

"Nah," Jack smiled. "Baby's like a deer, she spooks at the first sign of conflict and bolts."

"Well, if there is anything I can do to help, let me know."

"Thanks Sarah." The two friends stayed on the bench in silence for a few moments, each taking in the events of the day. But as the sun began to set they each went their separate ways. Sarah headed home to her family trying to think of ways to help Jack and Baby. Meanwhile, Jack walked to Tibby's, trying to control his nerves at the thought of seeing Baby again.

But Baby wasn't there.

Author's Note:

I know it is short but I wanted to finish the part of the story that was in the actual movie. Now I can be all 'off-script' wooot


	19. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Jack tried to enjoy dinner but he couldn't take his eyes off of the door way. He kept wishing her to walk in, but she never did.

"So kissing Sarah. That was your big plan?" Skittery said, joining Jack at the booth.

"I find that jealously can be a great motivator," Jack replied, mimicking Roosevelt's words from the carriage ride.

"Yeah. But motivate her to do what?" With that Skittery finished his drink and left Jack to ponder the possible answers.

Baby lifted her head up from the bar. The musk of Medda's dance hall was causing her to feel s thought the room was spinning wildly out of control. The four glasses of wine weren't helping either.

Medda saw her and rushed over, "Baby, dear. What is going on?"

"I saw him! With _her_." Baby tried to get up but fell back against a nearby wall. "Worst thing is I put him there. No. Not me. Spot. No me. I don't know."

"Baby, sweetie. You aren't making any sense. Why don't you come with me." Medda began to direct the girl into the back dressing rooms. She ordered a dark coffee for the two of them; she had a feeling it was going to be needed soon.

"Medda, I screwed up."

"Now now. I'm sure between the two of us we can figure out a way to fix this. Why don't you start from the beginning?"

Baby began to tell Medda everything, from the fight in the bunkroom, to the kiss in the distribution center. The coffee was helping her to focus, but it wasn't stopping the tears from falling.

"Baby, I thought you were going to tell him how you felt."

"I was! I panicked." Baby lamely kicked at the carpet beneath her.

"But why are you so afraid? You two are perfect!"

"And what if we aren't? What if I lose him? I wouldn't just be losing my love, but my best friend!"

"True. But sweetie, if you don't try, you are going to lose him regardless."

The next morning Baby woke up with a headache, but thankfully not as bad as the previous evening she had spent at Medda's; also, thankful with no nude Spot Conlon in the bed next to her.

When she looked outside she realized she had over slept for morning distribution, not that it mattered much to her at the moment. Baby's mind was filled with thoughts of Jack and what Medda had told her the night before.

She washed up and headed out for the day, shielding her eyes from the blaring sun. She had no time to adjust before she was plowed over by another person.

"Sorry. Sorry. Half blind at the moment." Baby stood up and shook off the dirt before noticing who she had knocked into.

"We have to stop meeting like this," said Sarah, lifting herself up from the ground as well.

"Oh. Sarah. Hi." Baby awkwardly mumbled, wishing it had been anyone else.

"Oh, hey! Did Jack and you get a chance to talk last night?"

"No. No, I haven't seen him yet." Baby looked down, she couldn't look at Sarah in the eye; it hurt too much.

"Well I think you two should talk. It's pretty important," Sarah gave Baby an encouraging smile.

Baby nodded mindlessly and excused herself. As soon as she rounded the nearest corner she took off running. She didn't know where she was running; she just had to get away.

"I don't get it Skits, where could she be?" Jack had spent all morning worried sick.

"Maybe we should check Medda's place?" Skittery wasn't sure that was the best idea, but even he was beginning to worry.

"Medda's? Why would she be at Medda's?"

"Hmm? Oh.. ummm…. No reason." Skittery headed off in the direction of Medda's, not really waiting for Jack to follow.

"Skittery? What would she be at Medda's?"

"I don't know, just a thought." Skittery avoided eye contact with Jack and just continued to weave in and out of traffic.

"Oh god. That's not where she.. with.." Jack suddenly took off in a run towards Medda's, nearly knocking over one of the stage hands as he burst through the back door. "Baby!? Medda!?"

"Jack? Where's the fire, kid?" Medda asked as she ran out to screaming boy.

"Medda? Is Baby here?" Jack asked breathlessly.

"No, not anymore. She just left not too long ago."

"So, she was here last night? Alone?" Jack couldn't help the stark feeling of jealous rising inside of him.

"She was with me Jack. Now why don't we talk about this kiss I heard so much about?"

Baby ran with no regard to where she was, or where she was heading. She until her legs couldn't carry her anymore.

She paused to catch her breath, bending over and placing her hands on her knees.

"Babes?"

Baby shot up, and looked into the eyes of the last person she wanted to see. "Spot? What are you doing here?"

"Me? You're in Brooklyn, Babe. Did you miss the big bridge part?"

"Oh." Baby collapsed on to the floor. She really had no clue how she ended up in Brooklyn.


	20. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

"Come on, let's go grab some food." He pulled Baby up and without waiting for a response, he began walking.

Baby froze for a moment. Her and Spot had never been friends. In fact, she hated him. She could never understand why Jack was friends with him, Jack was nothing like Spot. The thought of Jack made her ache. Before the tears that were prickling in the corners of her eyes could fall, Baby took one last look back towards Manhattan, and then ran to catch up with Spot.

The pair walked into Angermeier's, a small restaurant that the Brooklyn boys often took meals at. As they walked in, three boys stood up and cleared a table for Spot. Baby couldn't help but snort at how much they all looked up to their leader.

"Hey Babes! Where's your boy?" called out Magger, one of Spot's newsies. Baby just looked down and made way over to the recently cleared table.

Spot shook his head at his newsies, signaling them to back off. In no time, the crowded restaurant went back to their dinner, pretending that Spot and Baby weren't there. Baby looked around in confusion, she could never understand the Brooklyn boys.

"So, I take it you're avoiding Jack?" Spot asked as his food arrived. It was only then that Baby realized they had never actually ordered, the waiters just seemed to know to bring food.

"Do you have all of Brooklyn in your pocket?" Baby asked incredulously.

"Don't try to change the topic."

"Well I just did." Baby began to pick away at the food in front of her, hoping Spot would take a hint that she wasn't ready to talk about it.

The rest of the dinner was sat in silence, but Baby could see Spot struggling across the table. He was use to getting his way and it must have been frustrating to not have his questions answered.

As soon as they left the crowded diner, Spot grabbed her arm and dragged her into an empty alley way. They sun had begun to set so the alley way was darkened, but Baby could still see that the alley was a dead end.

"Time to talk. Now what's going on?" Spot asked, blocking the only exit from the alley.

"What are you talking about? You were there, you saw." Baby took a seat on a stack of crates.

"So you're avoiding Jack because you saw him kissing some girl? You do remember that we.."

"Uh. Please don't remind me. Jack was furious."

"You told him?!" Spot screamed out.

Baby hung her head, "Yeah. He had the right now know."

"_You_ were the one who said to lie!"

"Yeah, well, apparently I couldn't lie to him."

Spot took a seat next to her on the crates and removed his hat. "Man, Jack is going to _kill_ me." He crossed his arms over his stomach and leaned his head back against the alley wall.

"Now you see why I am avoiding him."

Spot looked over at the girl sitting beside him and had an idea. He grabbed her hand and began to drag her back out of the alley and on to the streets of Brooklyn.

"Spot? Where are we going?"

"To the Lodging House."

"What? No!" She tried to stop and pull away but Spot only gripped on tighter. "Spot! I said no! I don't want to see him right now."

"Not the Manhattan Lodging House, the Brooklyn one," he called back over his shoulder.

Baby relaxed and allowed herself to be pulled the remaining few blocks until they reached the Brooklyn Lodging House on the piers. She had been here a few times for poker nights with Jack. But it felt strange being there without him, or maybe it was just strange being with Spot.

Spot headed upstairs, never letting go of Baby's hand. He started to drag her into his room and once he did, he felt her pulling back again.

"Spot? Are you out of your mind?!"

"Huh?"

"That was a onetime only deal! And it is never, _never_ happening again!"

"What?" Spot looked around and realized the problem. "Oh! No! God no! I was just going to let you sleep in here so you could avoid Jack. I'll sleep outside!" He raised his hands in mock surrender, letting her know it was okay.

Baby looked over at the boy and reluctantly gave him a small smile. "Thanks Spot." She leaned over and gave him a small kiss on his cheek. "You know, you aren't as bad as I thought."

"Thanks. I think," responded Spot dryly. "Good night Baby."

As he closed the door behind him, he looked around for Magger. "I have some business I need to take care of. Keep an eye on her," he nodded towards his room and then headed out the door. He was hoping there was still time.

Jack and Skittery spent most of the day with Medda. She was always great at advice when Jack needed her. They even stayed for part of the show, but Jack wasn't able to enjoy it. He was worried about Baby.

When the two boys walked into the lodging house, the sun had already gone down. Jack ran up the stairs, hoping to find Baby. When his eyes fell on Race, Race merely shook his head 'no'. No one knew where she could be.

A sickening feeling began to fill Jack. Maybe she was with..

"Knock Knock." Spot walked into the Manhattan lodging house. Many in the room welcomed him as normal. But Jack stood frozen in the middle of the room. Spot cautiously walked up to his long time friend. "Hey Jack, think we can go talk somewhere?"

Jack looked over at the boy, considered his option then swung a punch directly at his left eye as hard as he possibly could.

Everyone began to call out, confused by Jack's reaction, and worried about Spot's response. Spot bit down on his lip to trying to control his anger.

"I guess I deserved that one."

But Jack wasn't done. He threw his weight into Spot, knocking him down on the ground. Before Spot could respond, Jack began throwing punches down. Spot recovered quickly and began to fight back.

"I'm sorry!" he yelled out while throwing a punch into Jack's gut.

"Sorry? You think that fixes anything?" Jack swung at Spot's upper arm.

"It didn't mean anything!" Spot as about to duck from another blow when Jack suddenly stopped and took a small step back.

"It didn't _mean_ anything? She means _everything_ to me!" Jack took one last swing, knocking Spot directly in the jaw. He turned and started to walk away.

"I know," Spot mumbled dejectedly.

Jack stopped and clenched his jaw. Race walked up to his leader cautiously. "Jack, what's going on here?"

"What's going on? He slept with Baby," Jack bitterly responded.

The entire bunkroom fell into shock.

Author's Note::

Thank you all so so much for your continued reviews! You are all amazing (and great motivators!)


	21. The End

Chapter 20

Race, as usual, was the first to recover. He launched across the room and shoved Spot as hard as he could.

Spot bobbed backward and glared over at Race, "Stay out of this." He spoke calm and even, but every ounce of a threat could be heard behind his words.

Race disregarded Spot's warning and reared his arm backward, intending on punching the boy as hard as possible. Skittery was quick to jump in, forcing Race to lower his arm. "Stop. Race, stop. This is between them, "he guided Race back over to his bunk, telling him to calm down.

Race ripped his arm free from Skittery and punched at his bedpost, needing to vent his anger, before dropping down to sit on the edge of his bunk.

Skittery turned back to Spot and walked until he was inches in front of him. Skittery, being the taller towered over Spot as he looked down on him in contempt. "What are you doing here, Spot?"

"I'm _trying_ to do the right thing," Spot responded aggressively.

"Really? And what did you think _you_ could do?" Skittery crossed his arms, looking doubtfully down at Spot.

"I don't know," Spot turned his eyes to Jack who was looking away. "Convince them to _talk_ to one another; lock them both in a room; handcuff them; whatever it takes." Spot turned back to Skittery.

Skittery gave a small smirk that only Spot saw before backing away, "Great idea." Jack finally looked up at Skittery in confusion. "To bad we can't find her," Skittery continued.

"I know where she is."

"Of course you do," Jack mumbled bitterly under his breath.

Spot rolled his eyes before stating, "She is staying in my room." Almost immediately he raised his arms in defense as he had done with Baby earlier that night. "Not like that! Just sleeping. I'm actually here, in Manhattan, not Brooklyn, in case you all didn't notice!" When the room began to settled back down, Spot addressed Jack directly, "She needs you, Jack."

With that, Spot turned and walked out of the lodging house. He knew they all needed time to process. He just hoped it wouldn't take Jack too long.

By the time Spot got back to the Brooklyn Lodging House, the stress of the evening still had him wired. He laid down on one of the empty bunks in the main room. He was use to his own room, where it was quiet. Needless to say, between recent events, and Magger snoring two bunks over, Spot couldn't fall asleep.

It was only because he was awake, that he was able to hear the faint noise of a window opening coming from his bedroom. He gave a small smile, in spite of everything. "Good luck, Jack."

Jack crept into Spot's bedroom and glanced around the room. Aside from the sleeping form of Baby, the room appeared to be quite empty. He walked over to the bed that she was resting on and gently took a seat on the edge. He didn't know if he was ready to wake her yet. He didn't know what he was going to say.

He looked down at her and gently pushed a small bit of hair off of her face. He could see tear marks staining her face from where she had fallen asleep crying. Regardless of everything going on, it still broke his heart to see her upset. Before he could stop himself, he reached down and gently kissed her forehead.

"Mmm… Jack? Is that you?" Baby slowly began to open her eyes. When her vision clear and her eyes fell on Jack, she quickly sat up. "Jack? Are you really here?" She reached out; grabbing his arm to be sure it wasn't a dream.

Jack gave her a small sad smile before standing and holding out his hand for her. "Come with me," he whispered.

Without questioning, without hesitation, she gave him her hand and stood up, allowing herself to be directed. Jack paused for a moment to take her in; her hair was slightly bedridden, her eyes were large and watery like she was frightened and sad at the same time, her lips were slightly parted as if she wasn't sure whether to speak or stay silent. He reached over, gently placing his hand on her cheek. The two friends stood like that, just staring at one another, not sure of what was going to happen next.

As quickly as the moment had come on Jack broke away and ducked out onto the fire escape. He reached back inside for her hand and led her up to the roof.

"Well, don't tell Conlon I said this, but Brooklyn definitely has a much better view." Jack walked over to edge and took it all in. The pair looked out on the gentle shores of the East River. The Brooklyn Bridge towering beside them, threatening to block out what moonlight they had. Jack looked down at Baby, who was staring transfixed ahead. She looked as though she may break down at any moment.

He turned her to face him, holding on to both of her hands. "Why?" he asked her gently, for the first time.

Baby shook her head and looked down at her feet, "I told you.. I was upset.. I thought you-"Jack freed one of his hand and use it to lift her chin. He left his hand to caress her cheek.

"No, why are you so upset?" he asked slowly.

"Because I-, because.. I.." Baby could feel her heart pounding against her chest. This would normally be the part where she would bolt, take off and avoid at all costs. But this time she knew she couldn't. If she ran, she would lose him forever.

"Because I love you," she finally admitted, as she could no longer hold back her tears.

Before she could run, before she could break down, Jack leaned in and kissed her; gently at first, waiting for her to respond. After a moment, Baby finally began to kiss him back. As their kiss deepened, it was as though the world around them began to fade away. The world didn't matter anymore; they had finally found each other.

-Six Months Later-

"Baby, hurry up!" Jack called out from the steps.

Baby was hugging Skittery and crying. "Skittery, thank you, for everything."

Skittery leaned down and placed a kiss on her cheek. "I'd do it all over again in a heartbeat." He winked down at her and headed over to Jack.

Baby walked over to Spot who had been hanging in the back of the large room. Things with Spot were always, difficult. Jack and Spot were still estranged, but Baby cared for him so Jack would put on a good show. As she walk closer, Spot launched himself off of the wall, "So, you're really going through with this, huh?" he asked with a smirk.

Baby playfully hit him and joked, "Hey, you had your chance."

Spot laughed quietly and pulled her in for a hug. He whispered, "No Baby. I never stood a chance. You've always belonged with him." He pulled back and gave her a small kiss on the forehead. "Now go, you're going to be late."

Baby gave him one last smile before running to Jack who had been watching the pair carefully from across the room. He pulled Baby in for a kiss and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, "Are you sure about this?"

"I've never been more sure," she responded before standing on tippy toes to return his kiss.

"Geez, knock it off you two love birds," Race called out, walking over and placing his arms around both of them. "Now get going!"

Jack smiled and reached down for Baby's hand. "Are you ready Mrs. Kelly?"

"But of course," she winked back at her new husband. The sound of the whistle blowing from the train announced that they had to board quickly. The couple waved their last goodbye before running to the train entrance.

As they found their seat, Jack looked over at her, "Santa Fe. This is really happening," he said, almost in shock.

Baby smiled and leaned her head onto his shoulder. As the train began to pull out, Jack and Liz, best friends since childhood, first crushes, first loves, newlyweds, and through it all still inseparable, were finally beginning their next chapter in life as they always did, together.

Author's Note:

I want to thank you all for sticking with me and continuing to show your support. I truly do appreciate all of you. Keep an eye out for my two new stories coming soon.


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